Shore Country Day School Bulletin - Fall 2017

1936

SHORE BULLETIN • FALL 2017

Head of School Clair Ward

INNOVATION AT SHORE

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2017-2018 BOARD OF TRUSTEES Jennifer Borggaard ’84 President Joshua Webber Vice President Duncan Wilkinson Treasurer William Shields ’84 Secretary William Charman Khoa Do ’86 Robin Ellis Franklin Foster Hugh Foster Anthony Frye Daan Goedkoop James Hamilton Leslie Hammond Rayna Lesser Hannaway Elizabeth Harrigan ’92 Elizabeth Mallon Denise Marks Cynthia Mazareas John Meany Anne Ruben Elizabeth Skates Sarah Wolfgang

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SHORE BULLETIN • FALL 2017

SHORE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL Established 1936 545 Cabot Street Beverly, Massachusetts 01915 (978) 927-1700 www.ShoreSchool.org

ADMINISTRATION Head of School Clair P. Ward Head of Upper School Walter F. Morris Head of Lower School Sara L. Knox Director of Admissions and Enrollment Management Daphne Clark Faldi ’89 Director of Advancement Jody M. Johnson Director of Finance and Operations Ann-Marie Flynn Director of Marketing and Communications William R. Fisher MAGAZINE Editorial Brooke Booth William Fisher Linda Grodberg Jody Johnson Nancy McNall Photography William Fisher Alyse Gause Linda Grodberg Paul Pelletier Design Jeanne Abboud Design

ON THE COVER: Head of School Clair Ward settled into her office, summer 2017.

CONTENTS

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From the Head of School

Innovation 04 10 16 18 20 23 27

Seeds for the Future Tabula Rasa The Best Kept Secret is Out An Earlier Start, Inspired by Italy In a Fifth Grade Writer’s Workshop, The Story’s Rarely Done Outstanding in the Middle Discomfort Zone

Community

30 38 42 43 45 45

A Retirement to Remember Faculty and Staff Appreciation Night A Gift from the Van Otterloo Family Foundation An Education in Giving Kris Trustey, Distinguished Friend of Education Spring Benefit: Prom 2017

News 46 49 52 53

2017 Closing Exercises Another Strong Year for Secondary School Acceptances The Class of 2014 Goes to College Welcome New Trustees

Inspiration 55 58 60 62 64

2016-17 Sports in Review ‘Birdie’ Soars The Hour of Code In Community, A Call to Action Digitally Mapping Middle East Conflict

Past & Present 67 69 71 74 76

Todd Grinnell ’91: Making His Mark Charlotte Ward ’10: Stanford Successes with Roots at Shore Class Notes In Memoriam Save the Date

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FROM THE HEAD O F SCHOOL

Learning

the Story

By Clair Ward

Innovation must be balanced with our roots in order to be effective.

So I will make myself a student. I am watching, noticing, and wondering as I experience Shore's annual rituals, ceremonies, and celebrations.

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M

y family and I have settled into Beverly after our move from western Pennsylvania. There is nothing like a move to remind you about what you value most. Packing the boxes with all of our “things” begs the question about what one would do if it all were lost. Then you spend time in the car making your way to a new home and realize that home is wherever the family is, not the things.

There is a great deal of research on ways to best manage leadership transition. Shore has done a remarkable job of taking its community through the most important steps leading up to this new chapter. The way the school thanked and honored Larry Griffin says so much about what the community values. The way

the school welcomed my family and me reflects your core values of being kind, true, respectful, open, dependable, and your best.

Now that I am on campus full-time and am able to immerse myself in Shore, two very important areas of focus have emerged.

First, it is important to me to begin collecting the community’s stories. These stories reflect the Shore Country Day School culture, and I need to make them my stories as quickly as possible. Our steadiness as a community will happen when there is clear cultural alignment between the leader and each member of the school: past, present, and even future. When we achieve this alignment, we will be able to create a shared narrative that gives way to a shared vision about what is possible for Shore.

Among the many compelling stories I’ve already been able to witness all across campus, I will admit that the energy of innovation and ambition among our faculty and staff—the constant pursuit of what is best for children—has moved me. I have found it a privilege to explore with you in person some of the ambitious ideas covered later in this magazine, such as design thinking in the iLab, a writer’s workshop in fifth grade, the embrace of the whole child in the middle grades, and a Reggio Emilia-inspired early pre-kindergarten program. My family and I have enjoyed experiencing the great creative energy that permeates Shore’s culture, seen in the stunning spring musical, the challenging work of Advanced Theater Arts students, inspired digital initiatives at every age, and interdisciplinary collaborations that affect the heart and the mind.

Finally, it has been a pleasure to join with so many parents, grandparents, alumni, students, faculty, and staff in celebrating our community, through classroom conversations, volunteering, and generous giving.

My other area of focus this year is to absorb the concept of tradition at Shore. Tradition is the footing on which we will build as we reach forward together. Innovation must be balanced with our roots in order to be effective. So I will make myself a student. I am watching, noticing, and wondering as I experience Shore’s annual rituals, ceremonies, and celebrations. One of those that clearly means a great deal to the students is Head’s Holiday—which, for the record, we most certainly will continue! What new Head of School would not relish an opportunity to play games and be outside with all of the children? The opportunity to build our innovation on our foundation will be my focus this year.

I have filled my summer with opportunities to listen. I have met with employees, trustees, students, alumni families, and current families. Each and every moment reminds me of why I wanted to be a part of this school. You should know that when asked what individuals value about Shore, nearly everyone believes it to be the people. I am grateful to be a part of your community and a part of this very special environment for raising wonderful children.

I leave you with a quintessential Shore moment. On July 5th, my first day on campus, I received an email from a ninth grade student.

Her message opened with, “Welcome to Shore!” and finished with, “I can’t wait to meet you.” This sentiment, so revealing of our core values, is the best indication that this is a tremendously strong community of dedicated people capable of wonderful things.

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Ward joked with Cornelia Sollins ’27 over the summer.

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Seeds

S E E DS FO R T H E FU T U RE

for the Future:

Clair Ward

By Bill Fisher

F

or Clair Ward, who became Shore’s seventh Head of School on July 1, 2017, it’s possible to trace the beginning of her professional path in education all the way back to second grade, when she was a student in Deborah Atwood’s classroom at Great Oak Elementary School in Danvers.

Ward spent first through twelfth grades in Danvers public schools, but Atwood’s multi-age second and third grade class was a world of its own—unique at Great Oak Elementary in employing a student-centered “looping” model of placement, which has children remain with the same teacher for two or more years. Proponents of looping say it allows for deeper and more productive relationships between teacher, child, and family, enabling educators to better support individual learners not only academically but also socially and emotionally.

“She was way ahead of her time,” recalls Ward. “Her classroom was an oasis; it looked completely different from any other at Great Oak. There were no desks; instead there were tables and a lot of collaborative work.” But the biggest difference, Ward observes, was “the shared understanding that we were people engaged in learning together, and the great confidence she had in us and our ability to grow. As I think back on that classroom now, I see an enormous amount in common with what I know and believe about education today.”

When Ward reflects on schools in general, and Shore in particular, the word she uses most often in describing her educational philosophy is narrative. “I think educators and institutions often assign a narrative to children, rather than stopping to listen to children’s own. But having watched Shore especially closely, what strikes me most about this school is that the vibrant narratives of children are alive and well. This is the reason I’m here, and the reason I want to raise my child here.”

Ward’s seventh grade daughter, Ella, has provided a humbling test of her belief in the importance of understanding and

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valuing children’s narratives. Ella spent her elementary years at the Valley School of Ligonier, where Ward served as Head from 2008 until coming to Shore. “At Valley, being a parent in my own school illuminated ideas about education in a completely new way, particularly when my knee-jerk feelings as a parent were in conflict with what I philosophically believed as Head of School.”

As an example, Ward mentions the topic of grades and report cards, part of the narrative that many parents and teachers impose

on children. “As an educator, I don’t believe that a rigid focus on grades or end products is helpful for most students. But as a parent seeing my child’s report card, my instinct at times was to want to ask, ‘Why did you get this grade?’ or ‘What did you get on the science test?’

Fortunately, I quickly learned how to filter out those questions, and my husband, Bryon, and I made the decision not to show Ella her report cards. We knew that focusing on outcomes would undermine what we really believe about process. It was our aim to raise a child who is

“I think educators and institutions often assign a narrative to children, rather than stopping to listen to children’s own. But having watched Shore especially closely, what strikes me is that the vibrant narratives of children are alive and well.

This is the reason I’m here, and the reason I want to raise my

intrinsically motivated, who has a strong work ethic—and Ella’s well on her way. When something doesn’t go as well as we might hope, I don’t let my parent instinct drive the reaction. Instead, what she’ll hear is something like, ‘Sounds like you’re satisfied that you worked hard,’ and her response is usually, ‘Yes.’ That’s the real goal, isn’t it?”

If Ella benefited from her parents’ restraint and trust in her own narrative, Ward’s story, too, surely reflects the influence of the trusted and trusting mentors she encountered on her journey as an educator. “All along the way, people were planting seeds,” she explains.

With her undergraduate degree in English and Classics from Hamilton College, Ward initially didn’t see education in her future. “It almost feels like a remarkable stroke of luck: I had never taken a single education class, but I was hired to teach middle school Latin at Holland Hall,

child here.”

Clair Ward, Head of School

Ward relaxed near the Winslow Building with Ella, Bryon, and golden retrievers Marley and Hazel.

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S E E DS FO R T H E FU T U RE

a top-notch K-12 school in Tulsa.

It’s not uncommon for independent schools to roll the dice on someone they are interested in, but I was tremendously fortunate nonetheless: I ended up surrounded by incredible colleagues who mentored and supported me for three years. Very quickly, I took to it; teaching just felt intuitive to me.”

One of Ward’s earliest experiences at Holland Hall School offered a lesson that would stay with her throughout her career. “I had a brilliant student who liked to take apart calculators on a daily basis,” she recalls. “I’d take the calculator away each day and ask him to pay attention. The next day he’d show up with a new calculator.

I’d take that one away and ask him to pay attention, and so on the next day and the next. One day I wondered what would happen if I didn’t take the calculator away, so I let him keep it, and his focus in class just locked in. For the rest of the year, we had an agreement: if you can sit and pay attention and not bother anyone else, you can take apart as many calculators as you want. He became a tremendous Latin student, too.”

Wondering what will happen, looking for the next thing to know or opportunity to lean into—these define the mindset that propelled Ward from Tulsa to Boston College, where she completed her master’s in education, and eventually to the San Francisco Bay area, where she began to tackle bigger challenges in curriculum structure and leadership as Associate Head at the preschool through grade five Phillips Brooks School. “At Phillips Brooks, I worked with a Head, Beth Passi, who was an incredible example of someone passionate about progressive education.”

Passi had established a new Reggio Emilia-inspired preschool program, which was well outside of Ward’s comfort zone. “The leaders

Ward helped students raise the Shore flag on Opening Day, September 6, 2017.

of the preschool kept saying to me, ‘Just come spend time down here.

Just play. You’ll start to get it. You’ll see it in action,’” Ward recollects.

“And I remember feeling a little bit stiff: I had zero experience with three- and four-year-olds from an education standpoint, and the lack of formal instruction in the Reggio environment was completely unfamiliar to me.”

But one day, with no idea that this new administrator was uncomfortable, a child approached Ward.

“She grabbed me, dragged me over to the dress-up area, and basically insisted that we dress up,” Ward says. “And so I finally jumped in.

As Piaget said, ‘Play is the work of childhood.’” Later in the year, after Ward had “bought in” completely to the school’s philosophy, one of the preschool teachers urged her to remember the moment as a time when she took a chance and crossed a boundary and came out the other side all the better for it. “So while I’ve always sought out mentors,”

Ward reflects, “it’s just as often been children who’ve planted those seeds along my path, showing me the way.”

Though many experiences such as these have shaped Ward’s student-centered philosophy—her idea of listening for the child’s narrative, and joining the child in it—unique opportunities for professional development and travel, made possible by the independent schools where she’s served, have brought a truly global perspective into her approach to education. “I believe strongly in travel for both children and adults,” she says.

“I see travel as a way to stretch intellectually, emotionally. Each destination, whether it’s across the globe or right here in our own backyard, is a challenge that requires new ways of listening and observing—again, picking up on the narrative of an unfamiliar place or culture, gaining new understanding, incorporating that into your own practice as a teacher and a leader.”

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Most recently, Ward landed in China, where she traveled with 250 fellow educators to visit both public and private schools. To the surprise of many of her colleagues, what they discovered in Chinese schools was “a system that works,” she explains. “Our stereotype is that education in China is oppressive and one-dimensional. In reality, there’s a blending of academics, vocational training, and cultural training that we rarely see in the United States.” Prior to the China trip, Ward was part of an international delegation of NAIS that traveled to India, where delegates looked at how non-governmental organizations play a role in the country’s educational system, and to Israel, where they discovered perspectives on education among Israelis and Palestinians.

“Each trip took me past another threshold, requiring that I stretch culturally and intellectually, and ultimately arrive at a new understanding.”

Ward describes becoming an independent school head in similar terms. “Earlier in my career as an educator, I had always assumed it was the head’s task alone to create the vision of excellence and communicate it. But in my very first year at Valley, I realized, through observation and conversations, that the excellence was already there—the community simply had no idea how amazing its school was.

So working collaboratively with children, parents, board members, faculty, or employees, it really became my job to listen and to help expose the vision, help the school community find the vocabulary to express that excellence.”

During that process, Ward also came to see the importance of truly understanding a school’s culture and history. “Every community member has their own narrative about their love or frustration with the institution. And only by

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listening to them individually can you begin to get a sense of what really matters. At Valley, I discovered there were markers and patterns everywhere—some positive, some challenging—that revealed powerful themes within

“So while I’ve always sought out mentors,” Ward reflects, “it’s just as often been children who’ve planted those seeds along my path, showing me the way.”

the institution.” Ward says that this experience at Valley School helped to crystallize one of her core beliefs about the role of a head of school.

“My job as head is not to make the school me. My job is to coach, to rally the team together, and to help find the vision we all share.” The head of school, she says, just tells the story.

When Ward’s own story brought her to Shore, one of the first messages she shared with the school community, shortly after being elected Head of School, echoed those same ideas about her role: “Community members often worry about what ‘changes’ the new leader will make. I want to take this early opportunity to assure you that my job is not to shape Shore to fit my vision. My job is to help Shore be the best version of itself that we can realize together—through discussion and consensus.”

She added, “I simply cannot wait to be side by side with the educators and families of Shore.

Shore’s deep roots in progressive

education and raising children as leaders, thinkers, feelers, and responders in the world are a perfect fit for me. Your teachers demonstrate a passion for children—something I find so inspirational as an educator. It will be a pleasure to team with such a talented group of administrators and faculty.”

The prospect of leading a school she describes as “remarkably high-functioning” is an exciting one for Ward. Arriving on campus in early July 2017, she was immediately swept up in the ambitious project to build two new outdoor learning spaces and tame a wild wetland area to serve as an outdoor classroom. “I’m fascinated with the concept of using the outdoors to educate children, especially the challenge of doing so on a suburban campus where space is at a premium.” Ward says her excitement about the project is in part a response to what she sees as a disturbing rise over the past decade in issues of attention, focus, and anxiety in children. “Many schools are responding to these with onesize-fits all medication recommendations or classroom structures that only make the situation worse.

I see the outdoors and a connection to nature as an antidote.”

She points to outdoor education as just one among many aspects of Shore’s program and campus that have seen dramatic, forward-thinking changes over the past 30 years of Larry Griffin’s leadership. “I believe every institution and every person should be open to that kind of change,” she states. “I don’t mean change for change’s sake, but real progress that grows the institution while remaining tied to its core mission. At this time of great momentum for the school, I’m confident we can harness that energy in the service of the hopes and opportunities that will define Shore’s next 30 years.”

Outtakes Can you introduce your family members, and describe them in one word?

Who is the person you most admire, and what do you admire about him or her?

Bryon Williams, husband, English teacher at the Academy at Penguin Hall: STEADY. Ella Williams, daughter, seventh grade student at Shore: RESILIENT.

This changes very regularly for me.

My hero right now is not someone famous. She is a grandmother raising a seven-year-old grandson.

She brought him to independent schools because he needed to be academically challenged. She stretched outside of her comfort zone to do what was right for him, no matter how awkward she felt.

Right now, her grandson is facing a series of painful surgeries and hospitalizations with no end in sight. She is my hero, someone who is providing a true example of devotion, love, and dedication. I keep the boy’s picture on my desk as a reminder of his bravery and her commitment. I would love to be either of them when I grow up.

What is it like being married to a teacher?

From an educational standpoint, we’re in total agreement philosophically. Because I’m the administrator and he’s so passionate about teaching, there’s inherent balance in the conversations we have around the dinner table. He’s also my best critic; he’s great at asking me thoughtful questions that inspire reflection.

What’s the most memorable family getaway you’ve ever had?

The beach. We do not need fancy— just sand, waves, and each other.

Our family finds the beach a true escape; when we are there, we are in the family zone and no other. In addition to the continental United States, we have enjoyed beach trips to the Bahamas, Mexico, and Hawaii.

Do you have any hobbies or special talents?

I love to play violin and also to sing.

Could you tell us about your pets and their trademark behaviors?

Marley, nine-year-old golden retriever: loves nothing more than to roll in a fine pile of bear scat. Hazel, two-year-old golden retriever: suffers from FOMO or Fear Of Missing Out.

What music can you dance to?

The current ring tone on my phone is a Meghan Trainor song. When I know you better, I will tell you which one and what I really dance to.

Are you involved with any causes or organizations outside of Shore?

Most recently I have been a Rotarian, and I also served as a Commissioner for the Pennsylvania Association of Independent Schools.

What has been your proudest moment in life, so far?

Two years ago a group of students from my school went to meet Madame Liu, the Vice Premier of China. In a spontaneous moment on the stage, a fourth grader spoke to Madame Liu in Chinese. The Vice Premier turned around with a look of surprise as the Chinese was spoken with an authentic accent.

This was a proud moment for me because only three years before, the faculty and I had taken a chance on starting a visiting teacher program with China. This was the moment when I knew that decision, which felt risky at the time, was truly worth it.

What is something people would be surprised to learn about you?

I was a captain of the cheerleading squad at Danvers High School!

Clockwise from top right: Ward dressed for soccer; graduating from Danvers High School; leading a cheer; practicing the violin.

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Tabula Rasa

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Upper Schoolers measured the angle of a solar panel.

TA BU LA RASA

The Innovation Lab, Five Years On

By Bill Fisher

T

he familiar Latin expression “tabula rasa” means “erased slate” or, more commonly, “blank slate.” Ancient Romans took their notes on reusable wax tablets; to create a fresh surface ready for writing, they’d heat the wax and smooth it over: tabula rasa.

According to Cam McNall, the Romans’ blank slate is the perfect metaphor for Shore’s Innovation Lab. Appointed as the facility’s manager shortly before final construction was completed on this late addition to the Lawrence A. Griffin Center for Creativity in 2013, McNall helped to imagine all the ways students and faculty could make use of a grand, two-story workshop that, at the time, was literally nearly empty.

“Donors to the At Our Finest Campaign were passionate about making this kind of space a reality,” Lower School students worked on mbiras, one of McNall’s signature iLab challenges.

McNall recalls, “but when I first interviewed for the manager’s job, I was told, ‘We know we want this to be a focal point for hands-on expand and deepen whatever conversations students learning, but we have no idea what that looks like.’” are already having in the classroom. The workshop was McNall was just the kind of jack-of-all-trades who designed in such a way that it can become virtually anyactually could envision what that looked like. With a thing students and teachers need to do that. And when background that includes woodworking, welding, glassthe synergy with the classroom is right, the real value making, electrical work, theatrical rigging, carpentry, of what we have here becomes crystal clear.” and structural engineering, he quickly got started That special synergy, in fact, is the reason so many outfitting the Innovation Lab with new tools and equippeople from schools across the region come to McNall’s ment, almost all of which was mounted on wheels so iLab to learn about the unique and extraordinarily it could be reconfigured at a moment’s notice. The capable facility he helped to build. In practice, howtabula rasa concept proved doubly apt, says McNall: ever, what that synergy looks like may be very different the nearly empty space would soon be filled, but more for a ninth grader than for a pre-kindergartner. “It importantly, any configuration could be wiped clean took some time for me to dial in the complexity and simply by rolling tables and equipment in or out of difficulty of projects at each grade level—and imporservice as needed, depending on students’ ages, the tantly, how much freedom the students would have at subject matter, or the aim of the class. each stage,” acknowledges McNall. “Much of the deterHe explains, “One of the first things I tell people mination has to do with the development of gross and who visit the iLab is that the goal of the space is to fine motor skills.”

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From Pre-K through Grade 2, he says, “I work with the children to help them develop basic skills with tools, and become comfortable with certain ways of thinking, observing, and making discoveries on their own.” For example, he explains, Pre-K does a deconstruction of wood materials in SAIL, where the aim is to discover how the whole is made up of many smaller parts. “They bring all the deconstructed wood pieces they create back to the classroom, where they can look at them under the microscope to understand that there are even smaller parts inside.”

Third grade is the point at which the curriculum first opens up to the notion of design thinking and the engineering design cycle, McNall explains. “Again, in connection with the SAIL classroom, we ask third

Fourth graders tested their Inca-inspired rope bridge.

graders how they might go about harnessing the power of water in order to create electricity. Working in teams with a limited set of materials and tools, they choose how to design a waterwheel to generate hydroelectric power. We then measure the voltage generated to understand which design is most effective and why.”

From third grade on, students encounter many more opportunities to apply ideas they’re studying in class to solve challenges in the iLab; and the engineering design cycle they’ve just begun to explore becomes increasingly important in what’s ahead. In fact, that well-known cyclical process is so critical to everything the Innovation Lab represents that McNall has permanently installed a diagram of the design cycle on the ceiling above the main work area. “It’s a great tool

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to help students approach larger-scale challenges by breaking them down into discrete steps that are easier to grasp. Basically, the cycle says: have an idea, try something, and then trust your own powers of observation. Once you build your prototype, ask yourself what’s wrong with it? Scrap what’s not working, and keep what’s good.” It boils down to one well-known piece of engineering advice, says McNall: “Fail early; fail often.”

“One of the things I emphasize most often with students in this space is the idea of resilience,” McNall explains. “Finding joy in the process of discovery— despite the failures and frustrations—is what’s so important. While the final product may be interesting and valuable in and of itself, it’s the excitement along the path that truly matters most.” Not surprisingly, this is the same notion teachers express again and again when they talk about the school: intellectual and emotional growth through experience is the brass ring at the heart of Shore’s philosophy.

A fourth grade unit to study and recreate the innovations of ancient South American cultures is a perfect example of the power in experiences, regardless of the final product. “Peoples such as the Incas, Mayans, and Yanomami were tremendous inventors,” says McNall. “As part of their work in history, fourth graders researched some of the challenges these cultures would have needed to overcome, the materials they would have had access to, and the genuine innovations that resulted.” They then designed similar items, such as a leaf backpack or rope bridge, built around the same types of practical benefits and limited resources.

The process was an exercise in prototyping, recalls McNall. “In the beginning, all we did was talk in small groups, design miniature models, and draw diagrams on the whiteboard. The kids really struggled with how to accomplish certain things using simulations of primitive materials. When their initial attempts didn’t work, they had to ask themselves why, and then solve that piece of the puzzle before moving on to the next.”

This experience illustrates what McNall identifies as one of the biggest challenges of working in the iLab. He explains, “It’s so easy for people to get stuck in the engineering design process when they have a picture in their mind that they can’t let go of, and they keep trying, and failing, to make that picture work. Being able to give up that initial conception is one of the most

TA BU LA RASA

McNall talked with first graders ready to start work on their Little Free Library.

The tabula rasa concept proved doubly apt, says McNall: the nearly empty space would soon be filled, but more importantly, any configuration could be wiped clean

important skills students will take away from this space.” simply by rolling tables and equipment in or out of Once children reach the Upper service as needed, depending on students’ ages, the School, topics in science offer rich terrain for exploring ideas. Seventh subject matter, or the aim of the class. graders must translate their abstract understanding of anatomy into a functioning model of a human joint using materials such as wood dowels, tennis balls, elastic bands, and plumbing parts. Eighth young people, it’s incredibly important to recognize graders delve into eco-friendly power generation in and respect your own ideas. Somebody else may have an experiment with solar panels. “As part of a larger the idea first, and there might be better ideas online, unit looking at renewable energy sources,” recounts but don’t disregard your own feelings or instincts. Your McNall, “students are challenged to design an apparaexperiences and skills are unique, and it just might tus that will allow them to test the efficiency of differhappen that you invent a way to do something that no ent mounting angles for solar panels. Gathering data one else has ever thought of.” throughout the winter and spring, they have to find Science projects represent just a fraction of the the angle and compass direction for the panel that will work that goes on in the iLab. Music, English, history, capture the most solar energy.” Developed with science Spanish, social studies, art, ecology, and the outdoors teachers Oliver Hay and Jake Ahern, the solar project are also represented. In one of McNall’s “signature” has since earned recognition from the Massachusetts iLab endeavors, fourth grade music students built their Environmental Education Society. own Zimbabwean mbiras, small box-shaped instruOf course, admits McNall, students could easily find ments with tuned metal tines that produce the notes such data on the internet. “This is something that I in a scale. Students used oscilloscope apps on an iPad talk to students about all the time,” he insists. “Today, to tune each note by hand—lengthening or shortening a lot of people—of all ages—go directly to the internet the tines for a lower or higher pitch—and encountered for everything, without ever asking themselves if they concepts such as waveform and frequency. might know the answer or have an idea first. Download In one extensive design challenge that draws on your own mind first,” McNall advises. “Especially with topics in history and social studies, sixth graders

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Nazis’ strategy against the German resistance. McNall worked with English teacher Walter Morris to recreate a pivotal scene in the book, in which the boy astonishes Nazi officials by rapidly assembling an electrical circuit from a boxful of parts. “We gave the ninth graders the same challenge, asking them to replicate a written circuit design using a handful of parts. They were not nearly as quick as the young boy in the book,” McNall jokes, “but they definitely gained a new understanding of the character and what was at stake.”

Similarly, the ninth grade’s game-design project built around the iLab’s massive water table is aimed at expanding on classroom work. In this case, it’s the historical study of resource scarcity, which ninth graders also investigate on their spring trip to California.

The 16-foot-long table is essentially a simulated river environment, in which students must devise a game that emphasizes some aspect of scarcity. “It affords them a completely different way to look at what they’re studying in class,” McNall argues. “Watching the group dynamics, you see how difficult it can be to make the leap from narrative history to game rules. They have to create something that uses water and gravity and is actually fun. By playing their own game repeatedly, and revising it based on “My philosophy is always to let kids use tools feedback from their peers, students learn how competition works—which illumithat might feel a little too advanced for them,” nates the real-world competition for scarce McNall explains. “What I’ve learned is that if you resources.”

Not everything that happens in the iLab don’t start using tools from a young age, you is as methodically woven together with start to lose sight of the fact that you can.” topics from the classroom. Sometimes, it’s “just” stained glass or woodworking,

Cam McNall such as in the new seventh and eighth grade iLab electives, where students create Tiffany-style lampshades, construct functional beach chairs, devise Rube Goldbergcreate hand-operated water pumps using inexpensive esque machines, and more. Frequently, Upper School PVC tubing, then work as teams to fill buckets of water students bring McNall their own independent study and carry them around Shore’s Oval while spilling as project proposals, devoting their own time to crafting little as possible. The experience is designed to mimic wooden field hockey sticks or baseball bats, engineerthe challenges posed by water’s scarcity, poverty, and ing a working hovercraft, or manufacturing alpine skis other issues in South Sudan, all part of the sixth grade using special fiberglass material and epoxy resins. curriculum. In other words, it’s about empathy.

Occasionally, truth be told, McNall can get swept “Like many iLab projects that aren’t built around up in all the excitement, conceiving of a grand projscience experiments,” says McNall, “this one aims ect which, unfortunately, may lack a similarly grand to provide a hands-on experience that deepens both timeline. Such was the case in first grade during the intellectual and emotional understanding of a topic.”

2016-2017 school year, when teachers Mary Kinahan Another empathy-building challenge is one that and Deborah Parkhurst, with McNall’s enthusiastic McNall created for ninth grade English students, who endorsement, decided to expand their study of stostudy Anthony Doerr’s World War II novel All the Light rytelling through a design project: teams of students We Cannot See. One of the book’s main characters, would envision and construct Little Free Libraries to an orphaned German boy, is recruited by the Nazi house books around campus and in the community, regime after the discovery of his prodigious talent for in locations such as Appleton Farms. “In practice,” understanding radio waves and electricity, key to the An Upper School student used a soldering iron to assemble a stained glass shade.

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McNall admits, “this was much more than a first grade project.” Creating complex architectural plans from the students’ fanciful designs, McNall had to fabricate and assemble all the pieces for the Little Free Libraries, then disassemble the pieces so that the first graders could have their chance to build.

“The materials we chose took a lot of skill and patience to work with,” he explains. A waterproof membrane had to be applied to the top of each structure, and beautiful cedar shingles had to be overlapped and affixed just right for an exterior that would keep McNall helped first graders install a Little Free Library at Appleton Farms in Ipswich. books dry for years. “Still,” says McNall, “it was amazing to see the children rally around the concept and stick with the project to the “My philosophy is always to let kids use tools that end.” might feel a little too advanced for them,” McNall With optimism and ambition undaunted by such explains. “What I’ve learned is that if you don’t start learning experiences, McNall sees much more in the using tools from a young age, you start to lose sight of iLab’s future. He’s eager to expand the space to include the fact that you can. That’s one of the things that’s a clean room for working with electronics and digital been most rewarding about the past five years in the technology to support ground-up robotics projects. iLab—working with young children who have no idea “Younger students would begin with programming and that the tool in their hands is something that other basic digital components,” he imagines, “and as they people probably wouldn’t hand them, or that the got older they’d work their way up to various types of project they’ve designed would challenge much older control systems, and even robotics teams and compestudents. I think entrusting children with these expectitions.” McNall also envisions adding CNC (computer tations and responsibilities imparts a sense of awe and numerical control) routers and laser cutters, precision wonder at their own abilities. That’s when they begin to software-controlled machinery that enables rapid fabsee that they really do have the capacity to invent new rication of custom project parts in any material, from ways to do something, that they are the ones who can wood to metal to plastic. engineer the future.”

Ninth graders played a game they created for the iLab’s water table.

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Fifth grade Student Ambassadors ready to greet I N N OVATIO N house visitors January open

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ost days, Shore’s Admissions Office in the stately Winslow Building buzzes with the voices of parents and their children, the ringing of the information desk phone, the laughter of conversations and new introductions, the footsteps of volunteers stopping by for a visit— anything but a stately silence. For the three members of the Shore Admissions team, the noise is a good thing.

realized that we could be doing a better job communicating the excitement we feel about the school to the young families we know are settling in towns such as Lynnfield, Newburyport, and North Andover, as well as to nearby communities like Marblehead, Danvers, and South Hamilton.” The consultant also helped the Admissions team see that current Shore parents, who are already proud and passionate about the school’s success, might

The Best Kept Secret is “It used to be the joke that Shore Country Day School was the ‘bestkept secret’ on the North Shore,” admits Daphne Faldi ’89, Director of Admissions and Enrollment Management, a second-generation Shore alumna, and a parent of three current students. But in the region’s competitive independent school market, no one can afford to stay secret. The more people are talking about Shore, the more stories about the school are reaching interested families—and, yes, the more noise it all creates for the Admissions Office—the better.

“After working with a consultant in 2015,” Faldi explains, “we

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Assistant Director of Admissions, “I’ve really appreciated working with the Ambassadors. Their enthusiasm and love for the school have opened my eyes to every aspect of the Shore experience; even as an alumna, I find there’s always something new to learn.

That’s why this program is so amazing: the Parent Ambassador Program has exposed people to so much more about Shore. As parents, our Ambassadors know the

OUT

be the best messengers to spread the word with their friends and neighbors, whether at church, the grocery store, or town sports fields.

This was the genesis of the new Parent Ambassador Program, an Admissions Office initiative that relies on a corps of dedicated parent volunteers to be the frontline resource for families in the area. Parent Ambassadors give the majority of school tours to visitors, answer parents’ questions via e-mail and phone, and organize off-campus events that offer a taste of Shore in local communities. “As a new member of the Admissions team,” says Sara Kerney ’06,

school inside and out, and they love sharing that knowledge.”

The Admissions team is quick to credit a Shore alumna and parent of two current students, Weze Harrigan ’92, with building the dynamic volunteer roster and modeling the commitment to the school that is so critical in the program’s success. According to Kerney, “We knew that the parent who spearheaded the Ambassador Program for us could make or break the idea.

Weze has surpassed all expectations. Her enthusiasm and deep love for Shore as a parent, alumna, and community member have been unmatched. As we’ve worked to

A D M I SSI O N S

transform our Admissions game, she’s been the rock who keeps everyone positive and focused on why we do this.”

What parents pick up on when they spend time with Harrigan and the other Ambassadors is the openness and honesty of a community that’s simply proud of their school.

“Families sense it’s completely genuine,” adds Faldi. “When they experience the positive energy from our parents, and feel the incredible engagement and expertise among our faculty, the combination has them walking away from a visit in awe at the joy and excitement about learning that they’ve seen everywhere at Shore.”

Kerney says the authenticity factor is key. “With a fellow parent, our visitors feel free to ask anything they want—it’s a parent-to-parent conversation. They can broach difficult topics, or anything they might not feel comfortable asking someone they see as only an Admissions representative. We put a huge amount of trust in our Ambassadors, and honestly don’t prescribe anything. So visitors know what they’re hearing is real, not scripted.”

The Parent Ambassador Program is just one of the new initiatives helping to drive buzz about Shore. A selected group of fifth grade volunteers have infused events and school visits with their own brand of youthful enthusiasm.

“We worked with these Student Ambassadors every Wednesday afternoon during the fall,” says Faldi, “educating them about the school’s stats and history, the areas that are best for visiting; then we evaluated them on practice tours.

By the time of our major January open house, they were able to escort families all on their own, helping them to experience Shore through the eyes of a student.”

Other efforts that have made an impact over the past year include personalized follow-up

communications between teachers, Parent Ambassadors, and prospective families; and customized acceptance packets that include notes and photos from a student’s

“It used to be the joke that Shore Country Day School was the ‘best-kept secret’ on the North Shore. … But in the region’s competitive independent school market, no one can afford to stay secret.

The more people are talking about Shore, the more stories about the school are reaching interested families— and, yes, the more noise it all creates for the Admissions Office— the better.”

Daphne Faldi ’89,

Director of Admissions and Enrollment Management

visit to Shore. “When families get this many personal touches from the people they’ve met—and invitations to continue the conversation

about Shore—they inevitably feel drawn into this community, and comfortable with the school,” says Ali Jahn, Admissions Assistant and Registrar.

Even Shore’s new bus routes, which serve families as far afield as Lexington and Lynnfield, have become part of an evolving Admissions approach that’s laser-focused on responding to the changing needs of young, working families. Faldi explains, “Parents have lots of school options to consider, but one thing we’ve learned is that when it comes down to the final decision, it’s often about logistics.

They can love Shore, but if they can’t get here or make the schedule work, all bets are off. Adding bus options really alleviates that pressure for a lot of parents. With the increasing number of our families with two working parents, our bus riding population has grown phenomenally in the past few years; 50% of our students ride the bus.”

The quickening pace of change in Shore’s Admissions Office mirrors that of the independent school world in general. As parents’ needs change, so do the things they want for their children. “This is a huge decision for parents—not just financially, but for the whole family,” acknowledges Faldi. “It’s the longest time a child will attend just one school; parents are understandably looking at us from every angle. That’s the reason we offer so many different opportunities to visit, and it’s why we’re constantly learning and looking for new facets of our program to share with parents.”

Kerney elaborates, “As a team and as a school, our job is to look at everything with a critical eye, and never decide that something’s good enough. Just because we’ve done something one way before doesn’t mean we should keep doing it. We have to be thoughtful about everything we do.”

Daphne Faldi ’89, Director of Admissions

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Italy

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An Earlier Start, Inspired by Elia Tessicini and daughter Alessandra ’25 enjoy a book together.

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hen Pre-K teacher Tracy Keith illuminates the light table in the center of Shore’s new learning space for very young pre-kindergarten students, children instinctively move toward the enticing warm glow. Discovering the properties of mix-and-match colors and materials on the lighted surface, these four-year-old investigators resemble their older elementary and middle school peers—perhaps gathered around one of the school’s Harkness discussion tables, or arrayed alongside a workbench in the school’s Innovation Lab. That similarity, Keith says, is quite deliberate. “The vision for Pre-K 1,” she explains, “is to bring kids into the Shore community as early as possible, getting them comfortable right away with Shore’s model of children exploring and learning together—a concept that runs from the first day of Pre-K to the last day of Grade 9.”

The school’s expanded Pre-K program encompasses two years: Pre-K 1 for children who are four years old

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or younger; and Pre-K 2 for children who are ready for Shore’s existing Pre-K offering. Families may choose either a full- or half-day schedule for Pre-K 1, with both options priced to compete with traditional preschools and nursery schools. Whether they opt for a full or half day, families will find in Pre-K 1 the same blend of academic focus, creative opportunity, and personal engagement and growth for which the school is renowned. And, their child will be guaranteed a spot in Shore’s in-demand Pre-K 2 program and beyond.

Sara Knox, Head of Lower School, explains that Shore’s newest program is based on a child-centered philosophy of early education first developed in the village of Reggio Emilia, Italy. “The Reggio Emilia approach recognizes the instinctive curiosity and wonder a child brings into the classroom,” she says, “and has the teacher take a step back to allow the child to manage the learning process. In a Reggio Emiliastyle classroom, children work hands-on with a variety of materials, come up with their own questions, and invent the plan for getting answers to those questions.”

The learning space is open and airy, “literally allowing room for new ideas,” observes Knox. Year-round, the experience extends out-of-doors into a dedicated new outdoor classroom that’s full of possibilities.

But, Knox explains, “In large measure, the value of our program for four-year-olds is not just in the stellar curriculum or the custom-designed spaces; it’s in the expansive group of caring adults and older children looking out for their well-being, and building relationships that may last for years. For our Pre-K 1 students, the advantage in having two full years getting to know the campus, the community, and the culture is tremendous—they enter Kindergarten with such confidence; they’re often the ones who are quicker to read and grasp bigger concepts. The experience lays the groundwork for their entire Shore career.”

Those observations certainly ring true for one South Hamilton family, the Tessicinis, who were among the first to enroll in Shore’s early Pre-K 1 offering three years ago. Elia Tessicini, reflecting on her daughter Alessandra’s experience, attests, “The biggest thing we saw over Alessandra’s two years in Pre-K was how much

A N E ARLI ER STA RT

deal in developing ways to individualize our instruction she began to love school, to be able to fearlessly explore with younger learners, and when we met Alessandra any subject that she was interested in. Shore does such we knew we were ready. We saw a chance not only to a good job at fostering that natural curiosity.” support this particular family, but also to roll out a rich The Tessicinis discovered Shore when Alessandra and academically structured program to other families was not yet four. “We had considered all the indewith young children who were ready for us.” pendent schools in the area, and felt strongly that Being “the right child at the right time,” as Elia Shore was the right fit in the long run. But at the time, Tessicini puts it, couldn’t have worked out better for Alessandra was just too young for the existing Pre-K Alessandra. “Socially and emotionally, Shore gave us program, and we were going to have to change schools a great support system, getting her settled and confitwice—once for her first year of pre-K, and then a dent while we as a family went through a very difficult second time moving to Shore.” However, switching time.” But, she explains, the benefits would be the same schools was something the family desperately wanted for anyone. “If you’re a working parent like I am,” she to avoid: Elia’s late husband, Mark, at that time was says, “you’re going to pay for care at that age one way very sick with ALS, and they were doing everything they or another. And if you’re committed to the quality and could to protect Alessandra from additional upheaval. value of education that Shore offers, and you do the Fortunately, when Shore’s Admissions Office and math, then it’s a no-brainer: what better place to prePre-K teaching team heard the family’s story, they were pare for Shore than Shore?” in the ideal position to help. Tracy Keith and her longtime colleague, veteran Pre-K teacher Beth White, had for years envisioned a Pre-K program that could serve younger “In a Reggio Emilia-style classroom, children work children.

“The Tessicinis’ unique situation was hands-on with a variety of materials, come up with a real catalyst,” recounts White. “Over their own questions, and invent the plan for getting the past few years we’ve invested a great

answers to those questions.”

Sara Knox, Head of Lower School

Pre-K teacher Tracy Keith works with students around the light table.

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Charlie Wilkinson ’21 at work in Amanda Berg’s fifth grade classroom

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W R ITE R’S WO RKSH O P

In a Fifth Grade Writer’s Workshop, The Story’s Rarely Done

By Bill Fisher

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hen fifth grade teacher Amanda Berg first arrived at Shore at the beginning of the 2016-2017 school year, she brought with her an approach to teaching writing that she had first discovered during a weeklong institute at the influential Teachers College Reading & Writing Project of Columbia University. The renowned think-tank-like project originated the concept of the “workshop” approach to teaching writing to children, which holds that writing is a process, with distinct phases, and that all children, not just those with innate talent, can learn to write well.

According to Berg, “I use the workshop model because I’ve seen it work. I’ve seen kids really and truly become excellent writers. They feel and see the progress they’re making; they readily understand how their not-so-great first draft compares to their final draft. And they feel good about the process, even the ones who come into the workshop setting not liking writing. It has a lot to do with truly giving children ownership of their work.”

In Berg’s fifth grade curriculum, writing is divided into “units,” four- to six-week areas of study that combine language skills with topics in social studies, history, literature, and more. “Every unit follows the exact same process, so students quickly learn what to expect,” says Berg. “The first step is generating entries in a writer’s notebook based on research related to whatever topic we’re studying.

Second, students choose a ‘seed’ idea that will turn into their written piece. Next, they ‘zoom in’ on that idea and expand on it. Depending on what type of writing we’re doing, throughout this process I’m also teaching all sorts of mini lessons on the skills and the tools that they need as writers to produce that type of writing.”

Finally, students enter an extended period of revision—much of which happens through peer editing and feedback—and eventually publish their work. Peer editing is an integral part of the process, explains Berg. “Once they create a draft, each student has a partner read through it, mostly for content, pace, progression, and descriptions. Then the writing comes to me multiple times, as well, and I provide feedback on both content and grammar.”

In January of her first year piloting the workshop approach at Shore, after weeks of work throughout the winter, Berg and her fifth graders celebrated the culmination of a mammoth unit on historical fiction, during which students chose a moment in American history between 1607 and 1775 as the setting for a story about a fictional character of their own creation. “I had shelves of books available in the classroom for their research. Once they had decided on their character, they came up with a name, family background, and biographical information. They really had to dig into the research about the time period, and decide how their character would be connected to that.”

The figures the students imagined came from all walks of life, and spanned the entire stretch of American history from Jamestown to the Revolutionary War. Several students wrote about the establishment of Jamestown in 1607, with one student meticulously detailing the misery of the voyage across the Atlantic. Another focused on a blacksmith in Jamestown, and the hardships of pursuing such a profession at that time.

A number of students chose to set their stories in 1775, which was a natural extension of all they had absorbed on a class trip last fall to Lexington and Concord. Still others placed themselves at the center of Bacon’s Rebellion, each writing as one of

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“Now, my students know they’re not done on the first try. They know I will always have something to say about what they can improve.”

Amanda Berg, Grade 5 homeroom teacher Bacon’s leaders. “That rebellion was a very complicated moment in history,” explains Berg, “and it was interesting to see the students’ take on it. They ended up focusing more on the family relationships than the historical detail.”

The stories or journal-like essays were told in the first person, with plenty of dialogue, character development, plot points, and historical details. “It was a tough assignment,” recalls Berg, “which is part of the reason it took so long to complete.” Rather than wrapping up in the usual four to six weeks, this unit stretched from the fall all the way through the new year.

“We spent a lot of time making sure the writing was historically accurate. Many kids got so wrapped up in creating their story that they forgot at first to include the historical details that would make it believable. So through the revision process in the classroom, there

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was a lot of going back through the story, changing language, making sure dates were accurate, even checking that times of day were correct.” The Boston Tea Party provides a good example, says Berg.

“There is so much that’s been written about the timeline of that night that the students who chose the Boston Tea Party as their setting had to carefully reread and rewrite to make sure their fictional timeline reflected the well-documented timeline of the actual event.”

Some students took their work a step further, dyeing the pages of their works with tea to give them a historical artifact-like appearance.

But, says Berg, what was probably most striking about the historical fiction unit was just how much the students wanted to write. “They wrote and wrote and wrote—a lot!

Even though we had dedicated research and writing time nearly every day, and though I borrowed some of our social studies time, too, because of the interdisciplinary nature of the project, they still needed reigning in. They just had so much to say.”

The surplus of creative energy offered a surprising contrast to the first few weeks of school, when Berg says her students often raced through assignments so they could say, “I’m done!”

“Now, they never say that; my students know they’re not done on the first try,” she observes.

“They know I will always have something to say about what they

can improve. And the great thing is that in the workshop setting, they’re more than willing to keep working, even adding onto their original story.”

Berg continues, “What I stress with my fifth graders is that I want us to be a community of thinking and learning, where it’s safe to take risks. And during this unit, a lot of them did take risks: what they chose to tackle was hard. But they all felt confident enough to do it, even knowing they were going to get a lot of feedback that would require them to work even harder to change things, fix things, and revise their work again and again.

They were genuinely excited about making their work better.”

Still, every writing unit has to come to an end, and, says Berg, “We do that with a Writing Celebration. Usually each student reads his or her piece out loud to the class and then receives compliments from the audience about something specific they like about the piece.” The culminating celebration of the historical fiction unit and the students’ post-project reflections said volumes about the strength of the workshop approach. “I learned that if I put my mind and time into writing, I do great at it,” one student said. Added another, “I learned that I can write a lot more than I thought; I also learned that I could be a good artist.”

Berg notes that several students seemed ready to keep editing even after their project was complete. One said, “I realize that if I had had more time I would have changed my ending so that it wasn’t so sudden.” On the other hand, it was clear that every writer in Berg’s classroom had felt inspired and energized by the assignment. As one student observed, “If I had had more time, I wouldn’t have changed anything, because I really like my story.”

English teacher and Interim Head of Upper School Walter Morris at the Harkness table with seventh graders

Middle O U T S TA N D I N G I N T H E

By Bill Fisher

W

hen asked to describe Shore’s middle school program—the core ideas that drive teaching and learning in sixth through eighth grade classrooms—invariably teachers here will spend far more time speaking about social and emotional skills such as empathy, risk-taking, relationship-building, and self-forgiveness than they will about the details of the curriculum in European history, English, world languages, and the like.

“Yes, there are those academic expectations,” acknowledges history teacher Pat Coyle, “and there are some pretty rigorous goals in terms of where we want kids to be as students, but what’s most exciting about this place, and most gratifying for me as a teacher, is

the ways we’re able to guide them in terms of citizenship, in terms of overall wellness, in terms of mindfulness, in terms of empathy. ... That’s a draw for me, and I think for many of us at Shore—being able to think about the overall child. I love the success of a kid who’s feeling like they’re writing a paper more effectively, or enjoying a discussion more regularly, but what I really like is when you have a kid who’s beginning to step outside of themselves, looking at others, and doing something with that newfound awareness.”

Since the beginning of the middle school movement in the 1960s, study after study has demonstrated that a deeply ingrained, faculty-wide focus on the well-being and emotional health of children is the defining trait

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of the successful middle school program. As Thomas Armstrong wrote ten years ago in his The Best Schools, a publication of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, “...the biological event of puberty fundamentally disrupts the relatively smooth development of the elementary school years and has a profound impact upon the cognitive, social, and emotional lives of young teens. In line with this important insight, ... special instructional, curricular, and administrative changes [are needed] in the way that education takes place for kids in early adolescence. Among those changes [are] the establishment of a mentor relationship between teacher and student, the creation of small communities of learners, and the implementation of a flexible interdisciplinary curriculum that encourages active and personalized learning.”

Armstrong could have been writing about Shore’s middle school program: an extraordinary attentiveness to the unique needs of sixth through eighth graders is baked into our model at every step.

In discussing Shore’s use of Harkness tables and Harkness-style pedagogy in middle school English,

history, and science classes, history teacher Gwen Sneeden explains how important it is that we match what goes on in the classroom with who sits down in that classroom. “Middle schoolers have certain characteristics unique to their tribe,” she explains.

“Not only are they growing physically, they also have a strong need to belong to a group. The Harkness pedagogy interacts fluidly with the cognitive growth spurts and the need for energy release that middle schoolers are experiencing. When my students gather at the Harkness table for a discussion, each of them knows that his or her voice matters. They are part of a collaborative dynamic that uses extended conversations, which help them understand their ideas are real, valued, and meaningful.”

Pat Coyle’s classroom practice is similarly tuned to the developmental needs of his middle school students.

“There are times when I’ll take five minutes at the beginning of class to ask my students a simple question: ‘What don’t I know about life as a seventh grader?’ or, ‘What don’t I know about life as a sixth grader?’

They might start by talking about quizzes or homework, but then that five minutes turns into a suggestion session. Some of the other kids in the class may be able to offer ideas for how they can handle some of these bumps; I sometimes will interject with a few. The idea is, you’re bringing problems to us, and we’re going to

“One of the most important things I try to encourage in my students is a willingness to ask for help. Being able to ask a question or admit you’re having a hard time really is a life skill; it matters now, and it especially matters when they go on to high school and college.”

Seventh graders Alex Schimmel and Charlie Minney worked together.

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Walter Morris, English teacher and Interim Head of Upper School

IN T H E M I D D LE

how to pick themselves back up, with as much support try and help you. We’re going to accept those and help from us as they need. And as they get older they become push you to the next level, where you can do something more comfortable making mistakes and figuring out about it.” how to do better the next time. We show them you can Veteran English teacher and Interim Head of ask your friends for help; you can ask your teacher for Upper School Walter Morris echoes, “One of the most help. Everyone here is both a learner and a teacher.” important things I try to encourage in my students is a Coyle provides an example of one student’s growing willingness to ask for help. Being able to ask a question ability to move past the inevitable challenges of middle or admit you’re having a hard time really is a life skill; school. “She came in to talk to talk to me about a paper it matters now, and it especially matters when they go that she had written. She had done a pretty good job on to high school and college. I want my students to buy into the idea that they can, and should, turn to adults and peers who care about them, who want to help. Sometimes I pose the question, ‘What would it feel like if there was no room in your life to make a mistake?’ I think it’s important for students at this age to have the sense that it’s okay not to have it all together yet, not to have all the answers.

And particularly with those exceptionally driven kids, many of which we see here at Shore—I want them to be able to say they’ve done their best, and it’s enough.”

All teachers of middle schoolers at Shore recognize that their students are in the midst of a major transition, Eighth grader Kelly Blundin ’18 ziplined across the gym as classmates look on. during which their task as mentors is to help direct surging on it, and I went into an explanation of how I got to the emotional impulses into productive channels, transgrade I gave her. But she stopped me politely and said, form a hunger for belonging and connection into posi‘I’m not worried about the grade; all I want to know is tive social relationships, and mobilize newly developed what to do differently for the next time.’ For me, that intellectual abilities in the service of reflecting on the was the specific moment in time where that student transformations that are taking place in their lives. reached that next level we hope to see all our kids Paradoxically, many public and parochial schools in achieve. This girl had always been conscientious; she’d their middle school programs place the emphasis not always been intelligent. But now, she showed that she on the types of social and emotional needs that Morris was comfortable taking good risks, and she felt comand his colleagues emphasize, but on the achievement fortable coming to me for advice, just to chat. That was of higher test scores—far from the most important aim a transformative moment.” for students at this stage of their development. And The “good risks” Coyle talks about are key to Shore’s while Shore’s teachers certainly administer their fair program; he says it’s all about creating a safe environshare of tests and quizzes—preparing students for the ment where young people can try something new or academic rigors they’ll encounter post-Shore—those look at something in a different way, without knowing are in many ways beside the point. the outcome or whether they’ll arrive at the “right” “Sixth grade is the first year our students receive answer. “We really do want these kids to step outside of letter grades,” Spanish instructor Pamela Torres their comfort zone. Not so far that it’s anxiety-ridden, explains, “and so it can be really threatening or really but just enough so they try something new that lets scary at this age. But at the same time, we’re making them grow and expand.” a point of teaching our students how to fail well, and

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Phillips Andover. “I asked them, ‘How’s it going? Do you feel prepared?’ And both, resoundingly, said, ‘Yes. We feel prepared.’” When Coyle asked them what it was that made them feel so prepared, so confident at a school like Andover, the students kept coming back to the relationships, their ability to build genuine connections with their teachers.

“The fact that they could go seek support or “One of our philosophies is you don’t have to be ask questions, or show a particular interest friends with everybody, but you have to be kind in an area, seemed to put them in a position where they were most able to succeed,” to everybody. There’s a huge difference. You just recounts Coyle. need to be a good person.”

That preparation for success figures in one of Walter Morris’s year-long guiding

Pamela Torres, Upper School Spanish teacher

questions, recurring prompts for thought and reflection no matter the reading: “The question is, ‘What nourishes us?’” explains Morris. “It’s the notion of sustenance. When we read The House on Mango Street, for example, we talk about empathy as sustenance—our ability to find hope in human connection even when the world around us appears hopeless.”

“One of our philosophies is you don’t have to be friends with everybody, but you have to be kind to everybody,” says Torres.

“There’s a huge difference. You just need to be a good person.

Being good encompasses lots of different things: we expect our kids to be good to each other, to their community. But it’s not just about other people. You have Friends Brooke Schatz ’19 and Paulina Arce ’19 to be good to yourself, too.”

If it seems that having the time, the resources, and the morning, or checking in at lunch, or being here for the institutional support to think about students in Eighth Hour. You get really close: you learn what their this way must feel like a luxury to Shore’s teachers, styles are, who needs to go out and get help, and you they would agree wholeheartedly. Pat Coyle says, “Most help to get them there. Over the years you keep develoften, people focus on the trials and tribulations that oping that relationship. If you have them in class or on happen in the middle school years; but here at Shore, a sports team or you see them in the hall, you talk. Our we also get to attend to the amazing progress, the matusports program is unique in that way. As a teacher and ration, and the small daily triumphs that the kids have a coach, you see them four days a week at least for an at this age, too. We’re really fortunate that, despite the hour, and you’re outside together, not in the classroom.” bumps along the road, we can help them enjoy this time Torres continues, “I have advisees that I keep in as they’re growing socially and becoming who they are touch with who were here my first year. It’s a relationand developing as good citizens and students. I love ship that doesn’t go away.” the fact that we see our students becoming who they’re Those vital student-teacher relationships may well be the “secret sauce” in Shore’s middle school program. going to be, and we can wonder about where they’re going to head off to, and what great things they’re going Recently, says Coyle, two former students came for a to be accomplishing soon.” surprise visit, enjoying a day off in their first term at Genuine relationships are the building blocks for the safe environment that Shore’s teachers try to provide. Torres talks about Shore’s advisory system as the lifeblood that nourishes those relationships.

“I see my advisees every single day, whether it’s in

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Discomfort Zone

Ninth grader Gabe Driscoll presented his monologue.

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sk alumni of Sarah Carlin’s Advanced Theater Arts course to describe their experiences on stage during the year-long ninth grade elective, and one word is sure to come up: uncomfortable.

Most all would add, however, that it’s the best kind of discomfort.

First offered for ninth graders ten years ago, Advanced Theater Arts (ATA), says Carlin, is, quite simply, “all about risk-taking.

I ask students to step outside of their expressive comfort zone, and to find self-confidence

and self-awareness through challenges they never thought they could face.” If it sounds more like a workshop for personal growth than a theater course, that’s because it is.

“ATA is different from many other drama classes,” Carlin explains. “It’s for kids who love theater, of course, but it’s especially for students who are looking to discover who they are—who might benefit from the opportunity to escape the narrow expectations of others and make peace with a broader understanding of their experiences and personality.”

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I N N OVATIO N

For Christopher White ’14, now a freshman at Seattle Pacific University, ATA couldn’t have come at a better time. “The course was hard for me at first. In eighth grade and the years before, I was not a brave person. I had a very small comfort zone and was not very outgoing. I had trouble making conversation with people and making eye contact, and I was not a very communicative person.”

Yet, he recalls, “By the end of the year, I was really surprising myself. When we were practicing for our improv show, I went on stage and without even planning or thinking about it, I started singing a song. To put that into perspective, I never sing. Ever.”

Carlin acknowledges that at the start of the course in the fall, there’s almost always a student who’s ready to bolt on day one.

“Yes, the kids are a little scared. They walk into ATA sharing relationships and feelings with their peers that may be competitive or envious or awkward in any one of a thousand ways. So we do a lot of movement exercises during the first few weeks that allow students to experience very safe physical contact—trust exercises. In one, the students have a partner who lies down in front of them and whose head they hold up off the ground with both hands. It’s vulnerable, it’s cooperative, and it requires caring and empathy; it’s so different from other experiences they’ll have throughout the day. The barriers that they’ve carried around in the ways they perceive each other begin to break down.”

Empathy and vulnerability—keys to any kind of personal growth, Carlin notes—are themes that crop up during almost every session, and stick with students long afterwards. ”Our class grew up together for a year,” recalls Amy Torchiana ’12, now a theater major at Northwestern. “We became so close because we were vulnerable with each other in a way that could only come from practicing theater, practicing empathy every day. I still remember that moment when I thought to myself, ‘Oh no, I’m going take ATA and it’s going to push me outside of my comfort zone!’ But since leaving Shore, I’ve taken at least one theater course every year. It’s a workout for the soul. I think everyone (engineers, politicians, your average person) should absolutely have to take a theater class. It pushes you in a way that few things can—forces you to reflect, to understand others, put yourself in someone else’s shoes.”

Over the course of the school year, the progression in ATA moves from breaking down barriers and developing trust to taking personal risks. “The first big milestone,” Carlin explains, “is a performance for just the students in the class, which I call ‘Show of Self.’ It’s based on the acting teacher Stanislavsky’s idea of ‘emotional recall,’ which means digging into your own experience as the basis for expressing emotions on stage.” It is the first time these ninth graders perform alone in front of their peers. Vulnerable, sharing a real moment from their own lives, some even break down in tears. Yet it’s an experience crucial to the personal transformations Carlin hopes to witness in her students.

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D ISCO M FO RT ZO N E

“As a lifelong musician, my time in ATA has had massive influence on my comfort with performing,” reflects Gus BowderNewton ’12, a junior at UMass Amherst and a member of the a cappella Vocal Suspects. “The experience of standing alone on the stage and single-handedly creating another world for a moment was one of my favorite at Shore.”

Creating a world on stage is the ostensible goal of students’ first public performance in the fall, their monologue. “It’s one of the more challenging forms in theater,” explains Carlin, “and requires students to depend on themselves alone when they’re on stage in front of a real audience.”

During the winter the focus of the class shifts to comedy, and in the spring, students prepare the play they’ll present at the festival of the Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild. In 2017, ninth graders staged The Girl in the Red Hijab, a serious play focused on issues of religion, prejudice, and bullying.

According to Carlin, “This piece demanded real courage from the actors. The issues it addresses— prejudices and misinformation about Muslims in America—are difficult ones that could have been ripped from today’s headlines, and the high school students in the play grapple with attitudes and feelings that many of our Upper School students are familiar with, from wanting to fit in to being wary of peers who are different.” For the ninth grade girls, wearing the hijab may have been the most difficult part of the entire production. “Trying to envision themselves as a Muslim teenager in an American school was a challenging and unfamiliar experience. At the same time, it was eye-opening for both the girls and the boys in the class to experience

that discomfort and work through it together,” observes Carlin.

One of those ninth graders, Caroline Kagan ’17, admits, “At some moments I felt very uncomfortable, but I think that working through these feelings allowed me to let go of the worries I had being on stage.” Continuing with theater courses in her first year at Brooks School, she adds, “I also learned

environment that simultaneously helped me to come out of my shell.”

As Eaton’s experience illustrates, the stakes for ATA students are much higher than the completion of their ninth grade year—a fact of which Carlin is keenly aware. “These kids go through interviews for both high school and college; being comfortable talking about themselves will be

“I had a very small comfort zone and was not very outgoing. I had trouble making conversation with people and making eye contact, and I was not a very communicative person. … By the end of the year, I was really surprising myself. When we were practicing for our improv show, I went on stage and without even planning or thinking about it, I started singing a song. To put that into perspective, I never sing. Ever.”

Christopher White ’14

how to support my classmates in a performance, especially in improv.

This year I feel I’ll be very prepared to support my classmates and go with the scene.”

ATA’s year-ending improv “blast,” as it’s known, seems to stand out for many students as a major milestone. Tapley Eaton ’11, a senior creative writing major at Chapman University in California, recounts, “We were just goofy and had fun; it was one of the most terrifying yet leveling experiences of my Shore career. I still have a huge admiration for improv. I live in LA now, and as someone who dreams of becoming a TV writer someday, I have so much more appreciation for the art of improv after having learned and practiced the principles in a safe

key,” she observes. At the same time, Carlin notes, “Ninth grade marks a transitional time when they’re moving out of childhood and getting closer to adult awareness. That they’re doing something a little more difficult on stage, taking bigger risks, crystallizes that huge step, in the same way that Shore’s ninth grade program promotes the students as leaders of the school. Being on the stage is leadership, too.”

According to Sammy Brainard ’12, the ATA experience absolutely transformed the dynamics of her ninth grade year. “The course’s ability to bring each student’s individuality to life on stage was truly empowering; for the first time, I felt confident speaking loud and proud.”

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to ATE SAVE THE D , 2017

Retirement

REMEMBER O

n June 17, 2017, more than 400 members of the extended Shore community—including current parents, alumni, parents of alumni, current and former Board members, current and former faculty members, grandparents, old friends, colleagues, and many more—came to campus to mark the end of an era at “Griffin’s Grand Slam,” a gala retirement party celebrating Larry Griffin’s 30 distinguished years as Head of School.

He retired on June 30. e as w Please join us Larry and Cathy Griffin to s round the base ’s in and their sons, Shore ff ri G y rr celebrate La e! or Sh alumni David ’00 and at ak re st 30-year Robby ’02, arrived for the evening event along with members of their : N GATES OPE extended families and 6:00 PM the families of former Board members who elected Griffin Head of School in 1986, including Eijk van Otterloo, Neal Ryland, Ralph Sweetland, and Carroll Taylor Clark ’55.

Mingling and reminiscing in front of the Lawrence A. Griffin Center for Creativity—the capstone of the vision to transform Shore that Griffin formulated with Board members shortly after he arrived at the school—these early arrivals were among the first to glimpse the elaborate sets and decorations that had turned the courtyard and field beyond into a baseballthemed tribute to the Head of School.

June 17 Saturday,

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1. Robby ’02, David ’00, Cathy, and Larry Griffin posed outside the Winslow Building.

2. Guests enjoyed the evening.

3. Cathy and Larry Griffin listened to tributes.

4. Red Sox mascot Wally with event organizers Alison McMaster, Erin van Otterloo, Jody Johnson, Rose-Marie van Otterloo, Carol Townsend, Kris Trustey, Courtney Kagan, and Robin Ellis 5. Robby and David roasted their father.

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Under the direction of Dana Markos of Ipswich-based Dana Markos Events, workers had erected Fenway-style front gates and a classic green scoreboard to welcome guests, who were entertained by the beloved Red Sox mascot, “Wally.” Ballpark-inspired appetizers and beverages were served by waitstaff dressed in authentic Shore baseball uniforms, and as the crowd grew, the party flowed toward a massive tent that dominated the upper sports fields. There, guests found more baseball-themed surprises, such as homemade cracker jack, cocktails, and classic comfort food by Timothy Hopkins Catering; and cookies and cake pops handmade by Shore parent Carol Harlow-Carlson of Treat Cakes & Confections.

Displayed all around the tent were photos, sports memorabilia, and trademark hats from Griffin’s 30 years at Shore.

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According to event co-chairs and trustees Robin Ellis and Courtney Kagan, such a one-of-a-kind celebration took more than a year of planning. Kagan explained, “When we began brainstorming how to celebrate Larry a year or so ago, we knew that it would be fitting to celebrate the coach, the mentor, and the big-time hitter he has been for Shore. Given Larry’s long history of growing the baseball program here at Shore, we knew it was the perfect theme.”

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“This has been a community effort,” said Ellis, “calling upon the talents of our very own artists, musicians, and colleagues from school, along with a cadre of loyal fans eager to celebrate Larry and Cathy.” The lineup of presentations scheduled for the evening made clear just how many fans had come for this special moment.

Ellis and Kagan were first to the podium to welcome attendees and set the tone for the celebration.

“We gather this evening,” Ellis began, “to recognize Larry Griffin’s unparalleled dedication to students and family, his outstanding recruiting of teachers and staff, and his vision for this campus, which has made Shore what it is today—a vibrant community of teachers and learners gathered on a beautiful campus.”

Continued Kagan, “In baseball, a grand slam is a home run hit with all three bases occupied by baserunners, thereby scoring four runs—the most possible in one play. Larry Griffin’s three decades of leadership as Head of School encompass his own grand slam for Shore.”

After presenting Griffin with a hand-crafted wooden box of memory cards written by Shore community members, Ellis and Kagan invited to the podium President of the Board of Trustees Jennifer Borggaard ’84, who revealed a new portrait of Griffin that had just been installed inside the Center for Creativity. “This is a wonderful addition to our campus,” Borggaard said, “and it’s fitting to house it in the Center named for Larry.”

The crowd next welcomed Shore Athletic Director Nancy McNall, who told the seldom-heard story that connects Griffin’s career with her own. “Larry and I overlapped for one year at University Liggett School in Grosse Pointe, Michigan,” McNall revealed. She was just out of college, and Griffin was head of the middle school. But what brought them both to Liggett and would eventually take them both to Shore was the influence of a single educator, fellow Liggett teacher and mentor, Muriel Brock. It took Brock multiple phone calls and all her persuasive powers to get McNall to consider teaching at Liggett, but once she made the move after graduating college, “Her impact on me as well as my career only grew stronger,” attested McNall.

As for Shore’s future Head of School, Brock’s influence was life-changing—both for Griffin and for the generations of students who would revere him.

Their relationship began with tennis balls. “Larry grew up in Grosse Pointe,” McNall recounted, “where his house happened to abut the tennis courts at Liggett.

Sometimes the tennis balls would clear the fence and head into his yard; rather than tossing them all back, this little Griffin kid stockpiled the balls.”

As the athletic director and a legendary coach at Liggett, Brock soon noticed the balls kept disappearing, and she visited the Griffin home for an

A R E TIR E M E N T TO REM EM BER

1. Drew and Kate Hoffman 2. Faculty and staff past and present sang “Sweet Larry G.” 3. Patrick Wilson, Greg and Merrill Chin, Nina Wilson 4. Robby and David’s tributes earned hugs and a standing ovation.

5. Custom cookies and cake pops delighted fans.

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explanation. However, instead of tennis balls, Brock found a young man whom she’d eventually hire as a camp counselor and, later, as a teacher at Liggett after urging him to pursue a career in education. “Several years later,” McNall said, “Shore came calling, and Larry made the leap to become Shore’s youngest ever Head of School—again with sage advice from Muriel.” Griffin hired his colleague McNall away from Liggett just a few years later.

To the surprise and delight of the Grand Slam audience, McNall pointed out that Brock was seated as a guest of honor at the Griffins’ table that very night. Later on during his retirement party, Larry Griffin would again emphasize the significance of Brock’s patient prodding, eliciting further applause for this guest of honor. “If you knew the misguided youth you hired as your Head of School!” he joked. “The reason I’m here today is because one woman saw something in a kid—a kid in high school, a kid in college—and said, ‘You’re good with children, that’s what you should do.’ That’s what Muriel Brock did for me.”

The emotional tributes continued when David and Robby Griffin took the stage to recount some of their dad’s finest moments, and to remind the audience of their parents’ partnership as a “pair of master educators,” whose combined dedication and compassion made the school what it is today.

Robby Griffin explained, “Truly my mom and dad care about people more than anyone else I know, and they make sure that everybody feels loved, and that is going to be a lasting legacy.”

“We’re both teachers,” David Griffin said. “I teach high school English. Robby teaches middle school history. And that’s because of the influence of both of our parents. We want to remind everybody that it’s both our mom and our dad who brought us here today.”

David continued, “Our mom has modeled for us, and I think for the whole community, the way to live in service to each other. Mom

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COM MU NITY

and dad’s dedication to us has always come first.

But after the commitment to family comes their commitment to their extended family, which is Shore. So whether as a teacher or mentor or host of countless events—her roles are too many to list— my mom has always been integral to the job of being Head of School. When we’re celebrating my dad and his 30 years as Head of School, we’re really celebrating Larry and Cathy together, who’ve lived a life that’s been intertwined with Shore.”

Next to come to the podium was Cathy Griffin, who was emotional as she described the extraordinary devotion that’s been central to her husband’s tenure as Head of School. “Students who were experiencing struggles—whether it’s family, behavioral, emotional, financial—they confided in Larry. On any given night or weekend throughout these 30 years, it was more usual than not for Larry to be offering comfort, counsel, shelter—at times tough love. Kids in distress showed up on our doorstep in all kinds of weather, at all hours, looking for Larry’s support and understanding. He always understood their pain, their need for stability, their search for someone to believe in them.”

She recalled how, in their first years at Shore, a consultant cited two chilling statistics: the average tenure of a school head was three years; even more frightening, of all occupations—with the exception of Hollywood stars—the rate of marriage failure was highest among independent school heads. Yet, she noted with wonder, “Larry, through thick and thin, heart attack and migraines, camping trips and Board meetings, raising our boys, juggling our schedules and becoming empty-nesters, and now facing the terrifying idea of you without a maintenance crew, kitchen staff, and JoAnn [Amatucci, Executive Assistant to the Head of School,] to take care of you, and without 400 kids to adore you on a daily basis, we are looking back at 35 years together— and God willing many more to come—and we are still partners, and we’ll always be partners.”

Laughter, cheers, and a standing ovation continued as Cathy and Larry embraced.

Robby Griffin then returned to the stage to sing for his father the inspirational “You Raise Me Up,” followed by a faculty and staff rendition of “Sweet Caroline,” featuring altered lyrics that charted Larry Griffin’s three decades of leadership.

Following these, senior faculty member and third grade teacher Sam Hamlin said simply, “Thank you for 30 years of leading us, cajoling us, maybe pushing us when we didn’t want to be pushed, laughing with us, letting us laugh at you. It’s been

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A R E TIR E M E N T TO REM EM BER

1. A trip down memory lane had the 400-plus guests laughing.

2. Griffin with mentor Muriel Brock 3. Nancy McNall recalled the events that brought both her and Larry Griffin from University Liggett School to Shore.

4. Josh Webber, Burr Clark ’80, and David Mittelbusher

In baseball, a grand slam is a home run hit with all three bases occupied by baserunners, thereby scoring four runs—the most possible in one play. Larry Griffin’s three decades of leadership as Head of School encompass his own grand slam for Shore.

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a wonderful time, and we’re so grateful to have had a chance to know you and work with you.”

To conclude the evening’s formal program, Kris Trustey and Rose-Marie van Otterloo came to the stage to announce several “presents” for the Griffins. The first: a three-week trip in Europe graciously underwritten by several longtime Shore families and special friends.

The second of the announcements was even more exciting. Trustey revealed that members of the Shore community have generously donated $600,000 in addition to the transformational gift of $1 million from The Van Otterloo Family Foundation to establish the Lawrence A. Griffin Endowed Fund. This endowed fund in Larry’s honor, now totaling $1.6 million, supports tuition assistance for a new student beginning in 2017-2018.

The Head of School was understandably awed when he came to the stage to thank van Otterloo and Trustey and to share a few closing remarks.

“I’m humbled; I’m overwhelmed. More than anything I simply want to share how much that I appreciate all of you for what you have brought into the lives of my children, my dear wife Cathy, and me. … You took a chance on a young, inexperienced, upstart leader with passion for the possibilities in education. I’m humbled by the generosity of the Shore community in repeatedly getting behind my grandiose ideas on how we could become better. I’m forever indebted to an entire generation of colleagues, teachers, staff, and administrators for their vision, for their passion, for their expertise, and their love of children, which has created the atmosphere that is Shore.”

Griffin went on to thank Muriel Brock, the mentor who shaped both his and Athletic Director Nancy McNall’s careers. He then said goodbye to the Shore community with optimism and affection.

“This is an amazing community, and you are poised for your best days still ahead. ... I leave you with confidence in the future of Shore, and an incredibly deep appreciation of what it has meant to me, to Cathy, and to our sons, David and Robby, whose choice to become teachers could not have made us more proud.

“As you all know, when you hired me, you hired someone whose partner in life has always been with me every step of the way. Shore would be a different school if Cathy had not been my closest advisor and most loyal supporter. We depart with the best memories that anyone could possibly imagine and deep appreciation for all of you.”

Guests, many moved by Griffin’s emotional words, rose for a prolonged standing ovation as he and Cathy hugged friends, colleagues, and family members, bringing a close to an incredibly special occasion and a defining era in the history of Shore Country Day School.

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Sweet Larry G

Sweet Larry G

Sing-along

Sing-along

Verse 1 Where it began, I can’t begin to knowing But then I know it’s ending strong A man with a ’stache Arrived on Shore school’s campus Who’d have believed we’d come so far Minds, touching minds Reaching out, teaching me, teaching you Sweet Larry G Good times never seemed so good I’d be inclined to believe they never would Oh no, no Verse 2 Look at the school and what your thirty’s done here We filled it up with awesome kids As our kids learn The teaching is so amazing We grew so much while we learned from you Minds, touching minds Reaching out, teaching me, teaching you Sweet Larry G Camping never seemed so good Most made it back Don’t forget to check the woods Oh no! no!

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Verse 3 Where will he go? We have a good idea and it involves an ugly van Or a man on a boat Maybe this year is lucky

Shore is so glad you came along Minds, touching minds Reaching out, teaching me, teaching you Sweet Larry G Good times never seemed so good you live the words Suum Quisque Optimum Oh yeah! Oh yeah!

Repeat chorus: Minds, touching minds Reaching out, teaching me, teaching you Sweet Larry G Good times never seemed so good you live the words Suum Quisque Optimum Oh yeah! oh yeah!

Lyrics by Sander van Otterloo ’91

Lyrics by Sander van Otterloo ’91

Sponsorships and Donations

Angels in the Outfield •

$1,000,000

The Van Otterloo Family Foundation

Legends • $100,000 The Trustey Family Rose-Marie and Eijk van Otterloo

Hall of Fame • $50,000 The Torchiana Family

Champions • $25,000 Jennifer Motley ’84 and Andrew Borggaard The Corning Family Sean Healey/The AMG Foundation Patricia and Bruce Herring Karla and Jeff Kaneb The Loring Family Elizabeth Mallon Michelle Franciose and Paul Schimmel

Designated Hitters • $10,000 Kathleen and Ronald Jackson Susan Jackson The Minney Family Kathryn and Ford O’Neil ’77 The Wilson Family

Infielders • $5,000 Maud Palmer ’49 and Randolph Barton ’48 Patricia and Andrew Campbell Dana Markos Events Courtney and Mark Kagan Didi and Neal Ryland Elisabeth and William Shields ’84

Outfielders • $2,500 The Ellis Family Debby and Tim McKenna Sara and Robert Mullaney Susan and Peter Murley Suzy and Gary Oakley Elaina and Biria St. John Seth Ward/Brown Brothers Harriman Bobbi and Bill Whiting

Players • $1,000 The Albrecht Family The Carmosino Family RL Clark, Jr. Family

Pam and James Demetroulakos Diana and Charles Devens Karen and Chris Doggett Donna and Anthony Filoso The Fortin Family Franklin Foster Elena and Hugh Foster Rosemary and Hollis French Nancy and James Hewson Katherine and W. Drew Hoffman Stewart Kemp The Sims Kingston Family The Lew-Leach Family Jack and Cathy Meany Katherine and David Mittelbusher The Murphy Family Sue and Sam Philbrick Holly and Nathaniel Pulsifer Whitney and Nicola Savignano ’84 The Seman Family Christy and Timothy Sheehan Patricia Moore and Wayne Sheridan Betsy and Gary Spiess The Stark Family The Wilkinson Family Yean and Christopher Young

Fans • $500 The Almy Family Beatrice Totten ’59 and Peter Britton The Charman Family The Chin Family Crosby’s Markets, Inc. The D’Ambrosio Family Ann Dau Mary and David Dearborn ’52 Thuy and Khoa Do ’86 Karen and John Drislane Essex Alarm & Security, Inc. The Fitzpatrick Family Carol and Peter Grieve The Hammond Family HR Insourcing, LLC, Ruth, Nyssa and Ethan Liebermann The Hulefeld Family Cara and Brit Hutchins Moira and Lance James David Livesey Martin Technical Services LLC Julianna E. Mullen ’00 Jim and Eileen O’Holleran Sage Morrison ’90 and Dan Pagano Susan Putnam Peck ’72

Stacy Silveira Jodie and John Stevenson ’70 The Styles Family The Talleri Whitehead Family Susan Thorne Anna Petropoulos and Ralph Weissleder Ginny Vogel ’80 and Clay Yonce

Under $500 The Bacigalupo Family Erin and Richard Barbato Christina Bates Deborah Bernier Verania Betancourt Maura and David Blundin Brooke and Griffin Booth Breen & Sullivan Mechanical Services, Inc. Lee and Stephen Carey Deborah and Richard Carlson Martha Carter and Mary Roickle Taylor Chin ’11 The Coates Family Susan and Thomas Coffman Wendy and William Coke The Collison Family Robin Coxe ’88 Lauren Crane Dave’s Carpet & Rug Cleaning Company Panda Ebling ’01 Sarah Enright Deborah Logan and Mark Evans Linda and Richard Fates Catherine and Alexander Felton ’66 Lisa and Andrew Flessel Paul Foskett Andrea and John Glovsky Judy and Bob Gore Linda Grodberg The Hamlin Family The Harrigan Family Jodi and Ivan Hernandez The Brian Hines Family Carolyn and Michael Hintlian Eloise Weld ’55 and Arthur Hodges Alison Verani ’81 and Charles Hoffman Tom and Chris Hubbard Franklin E. Huntress ’49 Marcia Glassman-Jaffe and Mark Jaffe

Cornelia Lee Jennings ’48 Jody and Charles Johnson Penny Xifaras Jones and Alun Jones The Kerney Family Eleanor and Peter Kuniholm The Lawrence Family Richard Lesses The Lucken Family Polly and Arnold Maloff The Marshall Family Mimi McDougal Mr. and Mrs. Augustus G. Means III Elsie and Michael Miller Paula Moseley ’70 The Neal Family Sue and Jim Nichols The O’Connor Family Molly Oldfield and Rachel Alexandra Yen ’08 Kimberly Paratore Colleen and Matthieu Parenteau Haley Patoski ’07 Caren and Paul Pelletier Rosemarie and John Perullo Jonathan Quade The Ries Family Ellen Robbins and Tom Barrett The Rollins Family Diana Schor Pat and Joe Silveira Martha and James Smeallie Alastair, Rebecca, and Derek Smith The Sofronas Family Amy and Peter Sollins Victoria Reeve Spaulding ’69 Joanne Tedesco Stacy Tell Karen and Thomas Tilson The Turnbull Family Janet and Howard Waldman Daphne and Brian Walsh Bradley Weaver Beth and Dan White Sally Kerans and Michael Whouley Mr. and Mrs. John F. Winchester Jean Woodward

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Faculty & Staff Appreciation Night

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s he had done for many years, Larry Griffin on May 4, 2017, delivered the thoughtful and emotional tributes to colleagues that are the beloved main attraction at the annual Faculty and Staff Appreciation Night, an event attended by hundreds of parents, teachers, staff members, alumni, Board members, friends, and family. But as he had never done before, this year the Head of School took a seat while others paid a final tribute to his visionary leadership of Shore for three decades, an era that came to a close with his retirement in June 2017.

The evening of appreciation began with Griffin’s praise for departing teaching assistants, including Terri Wilder, whose 14 years of service had been a game-changer, he said, “helping to create the positive culture that defines Shore.” Griffin also saluted teachers Robin and Fred Koval, who were moving on from Shore to return to their roots in Colorado. Fred Koval, Griffin said, “brought global experience in physical education programs to Shore,” while science teacher Robin Koval “has created a legacy of commitment and student connections. … Her students will never truly know the hours she has devoted to them personally.”

Griffin also shared appreciation for learning specialist Wendy Rubin, who departed Shore after 19 years to enter private practice. “Wendy has literally transformed our approach to supporting Upper School students. Thank you for sharing your expertise with us.”

Finally, the Head of School paid tribute to Head of Upper School and Assistant Head of School Ben

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Kennedy, who after eight years of leadership at Shore had been elected Head of School of Friends Academy in North Dartmouth, Massachusetts. “He personifies integrity,” Griffin stated. “He demonstrates commitment. He is revered for his ability to get the most out of his students and athletes. He is admired for the example he sets in work ethic. What an incredible job he has done for us! … It is an honor to see Ben accept the role of Head of School; he is ready, and the Friends Academy is waiting to see him work his magic with them.”

Griffin then moved on to recognize faculty and staff members celebrating milestone anniversaries, including third grade teacher Sam Hamlin, whose tenure of 35 years had begun before his Head of School’s. “Sam Hamlin is a modern day Renaissance man. When I arrived on the scene, Sam’s first five years had already passed, and he had traded his initial role in the sciences for his position as a third grade lead teacher alongside the equally legendary Anita Barbato. What a formidable team! The light, the passion, the love, and the inspiration to get children to believe in themselves were the order of the day. … My hat is off to you, Sam;

May 4, 2017

may you enjoy the same creative success and inspiration in the years to come as you have earned in the past 35 years of love and dedication to Shore.”

Following Griffin’s tributes to colleagues, Ben Kennedy and Head of Lower School Sara Knox took the stage to offer special thanks to Cathy Griffin, who, “for 30 years, has shared her warmth, her talent, and her humility with the Shore community,” Knox said.

She has not only taught in Upper and Lower School classrooms, added Knox, but she has also “mentored countless teachers and administrators both formally and informally. She has parented two Shore graduates through their student careers at the school. And, Cathy has been the confidante, rock, editor, and equilibrium for Shore’s Head of School for the last three decades.”

Kennedy continued, “Cathy’s commitment to her students and their learning is, quite simply, second to none. Children are inherently drawn to Cathy. Her compassion and genuine love of learning attract students of all types. Students stick around after class to ask one last question, because Cathy has found a way to pique their interest. Anyone, colleague or student, fortunate enough to spend time in her classroom knows that to be taught by Cathy is to be given the confidence, support, and academic underpinnings that lead to success. Cathy, thank you for 30 years of inspiring service to Shore as a teacher, parent, colleague, and an unparalleled source of support to Larry and to everyone in our community.”

At the end of the evening, former teachers, students, and colleagues spoke about Larry Griffin in a special video created for the occasion.

Stephen Hinds, who also retired in 2017 after 30 years as headmaster of the Meadowbrook School of Weston, saluted the friend and colleague he’s admired for so long. “What is amazing is that we’re both retiring the same year, and we’re both coaches of our respective school baseball teams” he said. “But it’s

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one thing to say that Larry Griffin is a professional friend. It’s another thing to say that Larry Griffin is a professional that I look up to, that I admire, and that I respect. I love what he stands for. I love the way he had a vision for his school, and how he pushed for that vision and made it reality.”

Former English teacher Joanne Harder, who worked alongside Griffin for most of his tenure, praised the transformation he had brought to Shore’s program.

“As a teacher, I always appreciated how open Larry was to new ideas. He brought coherent curriculum to Shore.

It’s an idea that he continued to expand, and it’s still expanding today when I walk through school and I see all the wonderful projects underway.” Harder also mentioned camping trips as one of the “greatest gifts” he had given to Shore during his time as Head of School.

Several former students remembered those trips as turning points in their lives. Weze Harrigan ’92, a Shore alumna and parent of two current Shore students, recalled one of the first ninth grade excursions to Squam Lake. “Three friends of mine and I took out the canoes at night, after we were supposed to not take out the canoes.

We got caught, of course, but we weren’t reprimanded.

I think that’s because what we really were doing—and what Mr. Griffin wanted us to do—was to explore, to find a different chapter of an adventure that may not have been exactly what he had wanted.” And Todd Grinnell ’91, a well-known actor, told of the ninth grade’s adventures on the first trip to the Mountain School in Vershire, Vermont. “In the middle of the night, he took our entire class and marched us, single file, out into the middle of nowhere, deep in the woods. The idea for this was to stay there for an hour and commune with nature, by ourselves, alone with our thoughts. Also, to survive for an hour in what felt like sub-zero temperatures.” Nonetheless, Grinnell admitted, “You made an incredible mark on my life and on my education. Shore has been the foundation for everything.”

Another former student and a player on Griffin’s baseball team, Peter Mansfield ’13, told of a similar impact the Head of School had made and continued to make as Mansfield went on to Milton Academy and Bowdoin College. “I haven’t been to Shore since 2013,” he said, “but we still have this long-standing relationship. He was the first guy I texted when I made the baseball team here at Bowdoin. He’s someone who’s always believed in me. I remember graduating, when he shared the little blurb that he writes about every graduate, and he said, ‘Anything Peter Mansfield can do, he will do.’ That’s something that’s stayed with me throughout everything I do.”

Board member Jim Hamilton, parent of one Shore graduate and two current students, mentioned son TJ’s graduation in pinpointing one of Griffin’s unique

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“Looking back on it now I realize that the costumes, the inside jokes, the puppy he’d bring to school—he did all those things to build those connections with us.”

Eloise Shields ’14

“He had a funny side to him, and he had a side where he was open to spending time to connect to students. I think that’s really special, and I know he’ll always be there for me.”

Claire Trustey ’16

abilities. “Larry was doing what only Larry can do— delivering a tribute of a minute or two on each graduate—and I remember him tearing up in that moment.

The thing we’ll always remember, in that giant gymnasium filled with families, is that moment for TJ. Larry’s always been able to make each and every one of those moments precious.”

Two former students wrapped up the tributes to Griffin by noting that their Head of School could be as funny as he was serious. Recalling one year’s Halloween Parade, Eloise Shields ’14 explained, “Mr. Griffin had the ninth grade girls all make Minion costumes with him. He was Gru—the bald-headed, pot-bellied man.

It was a huge surprise for everyone, and it brought all of us together as friends. We felt special; we knew he cared about us. Looking back on it now I realize that the costumes, the inside jokes, the puppy he’d bring to school—he did all those things to build those connections with us.” Claire Trustey ’16 agreed: “He had a funny side to him, and he had a side where he was open to spending time to connect to students. I think that’s really special, and I know he’ll always be there for me.”

A P P R ECI AT I O N N I GH T

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:

Jenn Borggaard ’84; Robin and Fred Koval; Ruth Bauer, Sam Bauer ’02 and Ashley Cambridge, Jim Bauer; Sam Hamlin with Ali ’06 and Eve Hamlin; Ben Kennedy and Sara Knox; teachers, teaching assistants, and staff; Oliver and Sarah Hay.

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A Gift from The Van Otterloo Family Foundation

S

hore is the recipient of a $1 million gift from The Van Otterloo Family Foundation, made in honor of longtime Head of School Larry Griffin, who retired in June 2017 after 30 years. The gift establishes a new endowed fund that will enable Shore to meet the financial assistance needs of one additional student each year. The Lawrence A. Griffin Endowed Fund will provide financial assistance each year for a student whose family would not otherwise be able to afford a Shore education.

Erin van Otterloo, Executive Director of The Van Otterloo Family Foundation, said, “In keeping with the mission of the Foundation, we are pleased to honor Larry’s legacy with this gift to Shore. We feel confident that this gift will make an impact in the lives of students and families right away. One of the goals of this gift is to encourage and inspire alumni and families to support Shore generously in honor of Larry and financial aid, so we can make an even bigger impact in the lives of future students.”

Based in Marblehead, The Van Otterloo Family Foundation seeks to make outstanding and lasting education accessible to people from all backgrounds. It was founded in 1997 by Rose-Marie and Eijk van Otterloo, generous North Shore philanthropists and internationally renowned collectors of Dutch and Flemish art.

The van Otterloos have known Larry Griffin and his wife Cathy since the Griffin family arrived at Shore Country Day School in 1987. As President of the Board of Trustees from 1987-1990, Eijk worked closely with Griffin to envision Shore’s future. Rose-Marie served on the Board of Trustees from 1992-1998, and both

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Rose-Marie and Eijk van Otterloo P ’90 ’91, GP ’22 ’23 ’25

have served in leadership roles at Shore for the past 30 years. Two of the van Otterloos’ sons are Shore graduates—Nils ’90 and Sander ’91—and three of their grandchildren are current students here. Sander van Otterloo has been a faculty member at Shore since 2002, and is the school’s Director of Secondary School Counseling.

Recalling their longstanding connections to Griffin and Shore, Rose-Marie van Otterloo said, “Eijk and I have known Larry and Cathy for three decades, and we cannot think of a better way to honor Larry’s legacy and dedication to education and the greater Shore community. We are grateful for his strong leadership, his instinctive understanding of children, and his lasting friendship.”

“As I look toward retirement,” said Larry Griffin, “this gift comes as a wonderful, welcome surprise, from generous friends whom I admire. Together the van Otterloo family, through years of service, leadership, and generosity, has transformed Shore. We are indebted to them for their investment and vision.”

Shore’s Director of Advancement, Jody Johnson, said, “This magnificent gift comes at a time when generations of Shore families and friends want to celebrate and honor our Head of School and make a difference in the community. The van Otterloos’ support will allow us to admit one additional student next fall, and augment our financial assistance program immediately.”

Shore welcomes additional support for the Lawrence A. Griffin Endowed Fund through gifts of all sizes via the school’s website: www.shoreschool.org.

An Education in Giving

O

n February 1, 2017, more than 200 people joined the Essex County Community Foundation (ECCF) in Shore’s Trustey Family Theatre for an engaging seminar with New York Times columnist Ron Lieber, author of The Opposite of Spoiled, a highly praised guide book full of practical advice for teaching kids about money, family values, gratitude, and the concept of giving back.

for Philanthropy, Carol Lavoie Schuster. “The goal of ECCF’s NextGen Initiative is to engage, educate, and connect Essex County’s Millennial and Gen X philanthropic leaders so they have the tools they need to make a real impact in their communities. Shore Country Day School is preparing the generation of leaders who will follow them.”

Lieber and ECCF Assistant Vice President for Philanthropy Carol Lavoie Schuster (second from right) with NextGen Committee members (from left) Christina Cahill, Sarah Gaddipati, Michelle Langille, and Weze Harrigan

The event was a joint partnership between Shore and ECCF’s NextGen Initiative, which seeks to nurture Essex County’s next generation of philanthropic leaders by providing the knowledge, tools, and support necessary to ensure longterm philanthropic impact.

“We couldn’t have asked for a better partner for this event,” said ECCF’s Assistant Vice President

The crux of Lieber’s philosophy is that regardless of income level, no parent wants to raise a spoiled child. And by talking to kids openly and honestly about money, even at a very early age, Lieber argues that parents can raise kids who have perspective and perseverance and who become modest and generous young adults who are financially wise beyond their years.

During the event, Lieber used funny and poignant personal stories and accounts from families of all income levels to illustrate the powerful impact that a frank dialogue about finances can have on a child’s ability to understand the world and his responsibility in it. He stressed that the simple act of answering kids’ questions about money (Why don’t we have a summer house? Why can’t we buy that?

Are we rich?) helps to break down the taboo around talking about money.

Furthermore, Lieber said that telling children it’s “none of their business” may signal to them that adults, as parents, are not the best source for answers, and may hinder them from talking to parents about other difficult topics.

“Their curiosity is to be valued and honored by all of us,” said Lieber.

Allowances are a good teaching tool to help reinforce important values, Lieber noted. But he pointed out that an allowance shouldn’t be tied to chores. “Treating chores like a job means that one day, when your child feels they’ve made enough money for the time being, they’ll just say no to doing chores.” Another reason to decouple chores from an allowance, Lieber continued,

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is that “kids are capable of doing much more than we give them credit for.” He cited the example of one rural Utah family he visited while researching his book: the family’s 10 boys, ranging in age from 5 to 21, essentially manage the entirety of the family dairy operation, with 1700 head of cattle.

Lieber spoke about the three labeled jars that are the centerpiece of The Opposite of Spoiled: “Spend,” “Save,” and “Give.” Starting at age five or six, a modest allowance can and should be divided up into the three jars. The jars encourage kids to prioritize their spending, learn the difference between wants and needs, and begin to think about sharing their good fortune.

The “Give” jar is one that is especially important to Lieber, who was raised in Chicago and lived a comfortable life until his parents divorced and the family fell on hard financial times. He was able to finish high school at the prestigious Francis W. Parker School only with a scholarship provided by the school community, and the experience shaped his values on generosity, which Lieber is passing on to his two young daughters.

“The thing that really hit home with our (older) daughter is understanding her own family’s history of having been helped,” said Lieber.

“Please tell your kids those stories.

It will help put them in touch with their inner giver.”

Lieber’s stories and advice resonated with those in attendance.

“Ron prompted guests to initiate family discussions centered around values like gratitude, giving back, and philanthropy,” said Jody Johnson, Director of Advancement at Shore. “Parents and educators left inspired to incorporate this into daily life.”

“One of the interesting things I took away from tonight was the idea of a giving circle for a school,” said Liz Bradley, a NextGen committee

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member and mom to two daughters, ages 15 and 13. She was referring to the story Lieber told about students from a Jewish school in San Francisco who, in lieu of exchanging Bar and Bat Mitzvah gifts, used the money to start a giving circle that grew into a $40,000 fund. “I think that’s a healthy way to get engaged,” she said.

two things I can take home tonight and use right away.” One was the suggestion Lieber gave to allow each family member, kids included, to toast to something they are grateful for every night at dinner, a simple action that, when practiced regularly, can establish a gratitude routine. The second was another of Lieber’s suggestions: get kids in-

Starting at age 5 or 6, a modest allowance can and should be divided up into the three jars. The jars encourage kids to prioritize their spending, learn the difference between wants and needs, and begin to think about sharing their good fortune.

Lieber spoke in the Trustey Family Theatre.

Filing out of the Trustey Family Theatre, parents could be overheard discussing the various ways they would use Lieber’s advice within their own families.

“This was great!” Shore parent and NextGen Committee member Weze Harrigan told Lieber as they talked after the event. “There are

volved in prioritizing the family’s annual giving.

“We talk about many of these ideas through our NextGen Initiative,” said Lavoie Schuster. “It was really rewarding to see so many parents moved to make changes and additions to their family routines based on Ron’s work.”

Kris Trustey P ’13 ’16 2017 Distinguished Friend of Education

K

ris Trustey was awarded the 2017 CASE District I Distinguished Friend of Education Award for her unwavering dedication as a volunteer and philanthropist at Shore, Brooks School, and numerous educational institutions around the country. CASE is the Council of Advancement for Support of Education; District I includes New England and Quebec and Maritime Provinces.

The Distinguished Friend of Education Award is presented to a volunteer who has made outstanding contributions to education. The award honors an individual whose extraordinary leadership has influenced an institution’s cause or the cause of education in general.

At Shore, Kris jumped on board as a volunteer with the Parents Association when her daughters joined the Lower School in 2007 and 2008. Within a few years, she co-chaired a record-breaking Parents Association Benefit. Kris is an outstanding advocate for education, for students and faculty, and a great partner to school leadership.

We are a stronger, better school through Kris and Joe Trustey’s leadership, and remain indebted to them for their selfless generosity.

Spring Benefit:

Prom 2017

O

n April 8, 2017, guests at Shore’s prom-themed Spring Benefit, “Shore Rattle & Roll,” saw the unveiling of the school’s vision to create three transformative outdoor educational spaces across campus and donated more than $90,000 toward the effort, which was featured as this year’s “Frenzy” item. In total, the Benefit’s live and silent auctions raised more than $200,000 to help support all of Shore’s exceptional programs.

Attendees showed off prominspired vintage outfits and hairstyles as they browsed the “Wine Wall” and auction items, including one-of-a-kind faculty experiences, vacation rentals, dining, and more.

Among the hundreds of coveted donations up for bid were a collection of hand-crafted student masterpieces, conceived by the parent creative team of Erica Marinelli, Heather Rosenbaum, Gatey Kagan, and Sara Mullaney.

According to Benefit Co-Chairs Betsy Shields and Carol Harlow-Carlson, “This was a highly successful Spring Benefit. From the stunning student masterpieces to the astounding participation in the Frenzy appeal at the event, the Shore community made Shore Rattle & Roll a prom to remember.”

Paul Schimmel, Michelle Francoise, Marcia and Chris McIntire, Betsy Shields, Larry and Cathy Griffin, Fiona and Richard Minney

Brad Haley, Franklin Foster, Hugo Foster, Chad Sumner

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80th Closing Exercises O

n June 14, 2017, 70 eighth and ninth grade students were graduated during Shore’s 80th Closing Exercises. The ceremony was the last for retiring Head of School Larry Griffin, who received an honorary diploma from students to symbolize his own “graduation” from Shore. It was an emotional moment for the Head of School— just one of many during the event, which capped Griffin’s transformational 30-year tenure.

Griffin was visibly moved at many points in his address before the assembled audience of family members, alumni, trustees, and parents of alumni. “This is a bittersweet moment,” he acknowledged. Halting every few sentences of his brief speech to gather his composure, he continued, “As we are poised to say goodbye, it has been my good fortune to witness the graduation of 30 classes of Shore Country Day School. As I stand before you this afternoon, I could not be more proud or happy. We have assembled the strongest, the brightest, and the most devoted, compassionate, and caring faculty and staff in

The Class of 2017

our history together. We are a school that always looks to grow, to change, and to improve. We make our decisions based on what is best for the child, and we are still children at heart ourselves.”

Graduation Student Speaker Abi Borggaard, a ninth grade varsity athlete and High Honors scholar, also spoke emotionally as she reflected on Shore experiences and

Ninth grader Jeffrey Feng congratulated a classmate.

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traditions, such as the traditional leap by graduates to high-five a hand painted above the exit doors of Howard Gymnasium as they depart the ceremony.

“Bittersweet is jumping up to slap the hand that you’ve looked up at ever since the Lower School.

Bittersweet is walking off the field after your last game with the letters S-H-O-R-E stitched across your chest, or taking your last bow with a cast that you’ll never forget.

Bittersweet is picking up your last blue lunch tray, and closing your locker for the very last time. Some people might say that graduation is moving on from one place to another; and yeah, we’ll move on to wherever life might take us. But we’ll never forget what made us who we are.

“I’m excited to move on to my next school and make new memories. But I know I’ll bring with me the memories that I’ve already written. From Squam Lake to Glendora, Mississippi, and from

C LOS IN G EXERC I SES

Mountain School to the Golden Gate Bridge, my classmates and I have gotten closer and closer together. There are no other people I’d rather get stuck in a canoe with in the middle of a lake, or navigate San Francisco’s Chinatown with.

As we worked together to restore a playground for less fortunate children and build a house for a family in need, we learned things we never could have learned anywhere else.

These are the experiences that have given me a new perspective on life.

The memories we made together here on campus, such as our annual Head’s Holiday water fight and daily foursquare games, are ones that I’ll always think of and smile.

“If I could offer one piece of advice to the students in the audience, I would tell you to make the most of your opportunities at Shore, because sooner than you know it, you’ll be walking out of these doors into the next stage of your life. But as we move on from Shore, we won’t forget where we came from. We won’t forget the people we met and the memories we made. When I march out and slap the hand above the door, I’ll feel bittersweet. I’ll be sad that I won’t see these faces next September, but I know I won’t leave them in my past.”

Griffin also offered advice to the graduates.

“I have this one last chance to share a few words of wisdom from my 42 years of teaching: I implore our graduates and those students who will graduate in the next few years to spend time this summer reflecting on who you believe you are, how your friends and family would describe you, and who you want to be. We have choices in life, and none is more important than the one we make in deciding who we are. As I shared with you recently at our Morning Meeting, I am not the person I see in myself—I am the person that others see in me. When I am able to listen to

Eighth grade graduates posed for a group photo.

others intently, to open myself to their constructive criticism, and see myself in the eyes of my friends, my family, and my critics, I am then in the position to become the person that I want to be.”

Griffin concluded his address with his hopes for the future—that of his students, and that of the troubled world they inherit.

“We live in a world of turmoil and possibility. I want to address just one sliver of the world of possibility. You students are among my greatest hope for the future.

Griffin congratulated ninth grade graduate Kiara Wilson.

You have privilege, and you have opportunity. You have access to the world’s greatest educational opportunities. Do not squander this chance of a lifetime. In pursuing your dream, hold fast to your character. We need future leaders with integrity and commitment to service, and this can be you. Our Community Code, on the wall above me, is a statement of aspiration. If you live by these ideals, you will be ready to lead. Some day, I want to cast my vote to elect one of you to be an inspirational leader. You can do it. You as the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth grade classes will remain etched in my memory as models of the character and conscience of which I speak. I love you all.”

Throughout the ceremony in Shore’s Howard Gymnasium, Griffin recounted highlights of each and every one of the 51 eighth grade graduates’ character and school career, after which ninth grade students surprised the Head of School by taking the stage and offering their own tribute to their mentor, teacher, and friend.

Griffin’s tributes, a hallmark of Shore’s Closing Exercises, were complemented by other traditions. Invited to present roses to their parents, graduates broke ranks during the event to walk

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The eighth grade Class of 2018

into the audience to share a moment with family, and longtime Shore community members were acknowledged with bouquets.

Newer traditions mingled with the time-honored. Eighth grade graduates—girls attired in white lace dresses and boys in blue blazers—held to tradition by arriving well before the ceremonies to receive white flowers: each girl chose a long-stemmed white calla lily, while each boy accepted a white rose boutonnière.

But for only the second year, ninth grade graduates wore pale blue; delicate blue delphiniums were held by each girl, and a blue pocket square was worn by each boy.

Blue was also added to the ceremony to distinguish eighth grade graduates who would return in the fall as ninth graders. More than a dozen chose Shore’s signature ninth grade program, with a level of individualized study and experiential learning unavailable elsewhere in the region.

The Closing Exercises concluded with the traditional benediction, sung beautifully by the graduates, who were joined by many alumni, faculty, and staff singers present in the audience. Earlier, eighth and ninth grade students had performed a graduation song of their own choosing, paying tribute to Shore’s

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vibrant culture of music, drama, and public performance. As graduates recessed, they each leaped to slap the painted hand above the gymnasium doorway, receiving a symbolic high-five from graduates before them.

Students and their families then gathered for congratulations from faculty, who shared reminiscences and well wishes for next fall and beyond. Graduating ninth grade and many eighth grade students will move on to high schools and college preparatory schools including Pingree School, Brooks School, The Governor’s Academy, Milton Academy, Phillips Academy, Phillips Exeter Academy, St. George’s School, St. John’s Preparatory School, Middlesex

School, and Holderness School.

This year’s ninth grade graduates of the Class of 2017 were: Daniel Blundin, Abigail Borggaard, Emma Borggaard, India Doyle, Gabriel Driscoll, Jeffrey Feng, Phoebe Goltra, Garrett Hughey, Caroline Kagan, Jacob Lapp, Cage LeBlanc, Alia Piccinni, Claudia Pollock, Gwen Schatz, Ethan Smith, Sarah Smith, Isabella Toran, Oliver Weissleder, and Kiara Wilson.

This year’s eighth grade graduates of the Class of 2018 were: Linden Adamson, Devon Alperin, Graham Archer, Anna Bargman, Kealan Biebesheimer, Kelly Blundin, Molly Bolland, Ava Breault, Catherine Card, Wyatt Carlson, Enzo Caruso, Alicia Coble, Abigail Cotraro, Carter Crocker, Ava D’Ambrosio, Teresa DiNanno, Julia Dobbins, Emily Dornan, John Fates, Catherine Fortin, Caroline Fritz, Peter Goeben, Charles Hoffman, Gianna Huet, Samuel Izzo, Sophia Izzo, Benjamin Jones, Sarah Kennedy, Birch Lake, Alisha Lee, Erica Lee, Emily LeMieux, Myles Lopes, Eleni Mazareas, John McFadden, Ainsley McKenna, Charles Mehm, Madeline Mullaney, Isabel Murphy, Jacob Nissenbaum, Alexander Oder, Rohan Patel, Bianca Perullo, Stephanie Pratt, Tessa Shields, Nolan St. John, Nicholas Talleri, Anita Ulfelder, Benjamin Wilkinson, Ryan Winchester, and Brigid Woelfel.

Ninth grade graduates surprised Griffin with his own certificate of completion.

A N OTH E R ST RO N G Y EA R

The Buzz is Real:

Another Strong Year

for Secondary School Acceptances

By Bill Fisher

F

or the second year running, Shore’s secondary school acceptance rate—the percentage of all applications submitted that received acceptances—has remained higher than average, with 66% resulting in a “yes,” and only 3% resulting in a denial.

“What I’m seeing in these results,” says Director of Secondary School Counseling Sander van Otterloo, “is that even the most competitive schools simply find it difficult to say ‘no’ to Shore kids.”

With a larger number of students this year overall in Shore’s eighth and ninth grades, those graduating in June 2017 submitted a total of 246 applications to independent secondary schools this season, up nearly 50% from last year’s total of 166. Out of this year’s total, 162, or 66%, received acceptances.

Given such healthy results, it’s not surprising that well over a half of Shore eighth and ninth graders who submitted applications—37 out of 58 students—will be attending a handful of the most respected institutions in the region and in the country, including Phillips Academy, Phillips Exeter Academy, Milton Academy, The Governor’s Academy, St. George’s School, Brooks

School, and Pingree School. At Exeter alone, six Shore applications were accepted, one of the highest numbers our school has ever seen.

All this, marvels van Otterloo, in spite of an admissions picture at independent secondary schools that is only growing more competitive. Rising school costs and increasing need for financial assistance, coupled with the record numbers of applications being received by all top schools, mean that every individual applicant is receiving unprecedented scrutiny. Schools are working harder than ever to balance limited financial assistance budgets with a desire to bring aboard students who’ve demonstrated the potential to make valuable and diverse contributions on campus.

Still, “Schools are developing a particular confidence in Shore graduates,” van Otterloo observes. “At a place like Exeter or Milton, time spent around the Harkness table stands out. In our secondary school recommendations, teachers may remark that a student is ‘phenomenal around the table,’ or they’re ‘leaders at the table.’ What that means to a secondary school is that a Shore student has spent many hours discussing

Sander van Otterloo with his seventh graders

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Phillips Exeter Academy; Milton Academy

material in depth, coming up with their own ideas, getting ready to launch into a high school classroom as a leader there, too.”

Another benefit of time spent around Shore’s Harkness tables is that there is nowhere to hide.

“Everyone sees everyone else face to face,” says van Otterloo. “The end result is that even our quieter students have learned how to be part of a conversation and to be proactive in the classroom about how to get their ideas and their voices heard.”

It’s not only academics that make Shore students so desirable in the secondary school world, emphasizes van Otterloo. “This year, students with very different talents and interests were accepted at some wonderful schools. It’s great to see institutions such as Andover pick up on the broad range of our kids—from music to sports to writing—and understand how special these students are and what they will bring to that school.”

“But honestly,” van Otterloo continues, “we don’t spend a lot of time talking about how many of our kids got into Exeter and Andover. Our philosophy is really finding the best fit for every student. To me, that’s a school that will challenge the student academically, that will offer them opportunities to pursue their interests, whether it’s athletics or the oboe, and that will also allow the student time and space to form friendships, and enjoy being on a beautiful campus with great people.”

However, explains van Otterloo, the placement challenge is becoming increasingly complicated, as a growing percentage of families receiving financial

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assistance—both at Shore and nationwide—apply to elite schools with a yearly pricetag that can nearly double that of Shore’s eighth or ninth grade. “One of the big stories this year is that there was a 110% increase in applications to secondary schools among our families on financial assistance,” he observes. “And the bottom line is that it’s simply more challenging to place financial assistance students. The new reality at secondary schools is that 40% of students are on some form of financial assistance, financial aid dollars are drained more quickly, and the need to rise above the crowd and be a star becomes key.” For van Otterloo, however, that’s just an opportunity to highlight what’s special about each Shore student. “Fortunately, at Shore there’s no shortage of great stories to tell about every single kid,” he says. “And as a result, we saw a lot of acceptances with these kids, too.”

Family factors beyond finances are increasingly in play, as well. “I talk about balance with kids all the time,” van Otterloo says. “But as parents work more and schedules get tighter, the idea of balance is really starting to resonate with the whole family. Shore parents want to find balance not only for their child, but for everyone. They want not only a school where their child can be happy, but also a place that lets them stay connected as parents. It doesn’t matter whether the choice is boarding or day school; parents want to

A N OTH E R ST RO N G Y EA R

stay closer, so they can share in that secondary school experience.”

This is one reason the number of Shore students opting for day and “backyard” boarding schools— in northeast Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire—is on the rise. “Families that live on the North Shore have settled here because in many cases their ‘compass’ points north,” observes van Otterloo.

“And so it’s easy for them to think about making a quick trip to see their child.”

Nonetheless, one of the most popular schools this year for Shore families was in the opposite direction: Milton Academy. “We had 13 students apply to Milton this year,” van Otterloo says. “Six were accepted, and five students will enroll there in the fall. That’s a marked contrast with the last few years, when we’ve seen just one or two students enroll. There’s energy around Milton within our community right now,” van Otterloo suggests. “I think families recognize that it has a bit of a Shore-like feel to it: there’s plenty of rigor and tradition, but you also see great new ideas. It’s a good fit for a lot of Shore families at the moment.”

Among them are the families of three Shore ninth graders who are heading to Milton.

“Our placement at the ninth grade level was very strong this year,” van Otterloo notes, “including for the handful of new students who joined us just this year for ninth. They’ve chosen a really interesting mix of schools, too—from the likes of Andover and Milton to parochial day schools and everything in between. It’s nice to see a very diverse group of kids being able to find the right home, whatever that may be.”

Reflecting on the uptick in the ninth grade class’s size this past year—a trend that continues in 20172018—van Otterloo says, “I feel like the buzz about

Shore’s ninth grade program—both within the school and outside of it—is very real. It’s about how coveted our ninth grade graduates have become. It’s the fact that a new student can arrive at Shore, bringing something new to the school and injecting fresh energy into a class that’s been together for years, and do really well from the placement perspective. It’s about great institutions that seem to be developing a real sense that the moment Shore kids arrive on campus, they’re going to bring a lot of good things with them.”

Sixth graders practiced the guitar in the Center for Creativity.

“This year, students with very different talents and interests were accepted at some wonderful schools. It’s great to see institutions such as Andover pick up on the broad range of our kids—from music to sports to writing—and understand how special these students are and what they will bring to that school.”

—Sander van Otterloo 51

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The Class of 2014 Goes to College Congratulations to these Shore alumni on their acceptances!

Grace Anthony Lafayette College

Emma Comrie New York University

Anna Kaneb Brown University

John Barrington Information not provided

Jared Denny Information not provided

Alex Kluchnik Brooks School ’18

Freddy Biebesheimer University of Glasgow

Sam Doggett Colorado College

Ali Knowles St. Lawrence University

Georgia Bowder-Newton Harvard University

Nikko Dominaitis Dartmouth College

John Kuzminskas Information not provided

Amelia Burke University of Alabama

Blaine Duffy Northwestern University

Alanna Cahill Union College

Eloise Eagan Information not provided

Ruby Lake University of California, Los Angeles

Jake Cahill University of Notre Dame

Bella Edo Amherst College

Zach Carmosino Northeastern University

Caroline Ellis University of the South (Sewanee)

Cassie Chin Amherst College Alex Claman Information not provided John Clark Brooks School ’18 Alex Collison University of St. Andrews

Luke Samperi Bryant University Eloise Shields Scripps College Nick Silacci Information not provided Sara Soedomo Information not provided

Grace Lindsey University of Wisconsin

Nicholas Stasinos Chapman University

Billy Liptrot Information not provided

Dylan Steele Information not provided

David Emerson Suffolk University

Griffin Marshall Bowdoin College

Maddy Stowell Information not provided

Julia Enright St. Lawrence University

Ledyard McFadden, Jr. Georgia Institute of Technology

Paul Strileckis Hofstra University

Ramsay Everitt Colorado College Katharine French Bowdoin College

Christopher Gyra Georgetown University Kate Haering Case Western University Nicholas Harrison Syracuse University James Huet New York University London Alex Kagan Furman University

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Emily Ryan Harvard University

Hannah Langer College of Wooster

Kevin Ge University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

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Meaghan Robichaud California Institute of the Arts

Julia McGarry New York University Garrett McKinnon College of Charleston Spencer Mehm Trinity College Jack Miller University of California, Los Angeles

Mia Terranova Information not provided John Torchiana Gap year Nicholas Vienot University of Massachusetts, Amherst Isabel Ward Colby College

Jared Moseley Information not provided

Laetitia West Boston University Academy ’18

Adam Parrott Information not provided

Christopher White Seattle Pacific University

Emily Patterson Colby College Nick Potter Cornell University

Missing or incorrect information? E-mail alumni@shoreschool.org and send us an update.

N EW T RUST EES

Welcome New Trustees Anthony Frye

Education: Hamilton College; Taft School.

Professional Background: Freelance writer and editor, National Geographic; Microsoft; Wildlife Conservation Society. Community and Interests: Board member, Manchester Historical Museum; Grants Allocation Committee, Women’s Fund; advisory board member, Historic New England and The Trustees of Reservations; Conservation Commission and Community Preservation Committee with Girl Scouts; traveling off the beaten path and doing anything outdoors with husband and children; reading and knitting; and keeping the historical heritage part of our life.

Weze Shorts Harrigan ’92 Family: Jennifer, wife; Jaylin, daughter, Grade 1; Jordan, daughter. Residence: Lynn. Education: B.A. in psychology; M.S. in educational administration; MA certified, Principal/Assistant Principal (PreK-6), Teacher (PreK-3) with SEI endorsement. Professional Background: Early childhood education; elementary school administration. Current: Vice Principal, Ingalls Elementary School. Community and Interests: Spending time with family, and enjoying sports.

Family: Dan, husband; Allie, daughter, Kindergarten; Reese, daughter, Grade 2. Residence: Wenham.

Education: Dartmouth College; Pingree School; Shore Country Day School. Professional Background:

Leslie Hammond Family: Jim, husband; George, son, Grade 4; Madeline, daughter, Grade 8. Residence: Manchester.

Finance, Goldman Sachs; development, Essex County Community Foundation; marketing. Community and Interests: Board member, Essex County Greenbelt Association; committee member, NextGen at Essex County Community Foundation; exploring the outdoors and traveling with family; reading; volunteering.

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NEWS

Anne Ruben

Sarah Wolfgang Family: Mel, husband; Miles, son, Grade 2; Lola, daughter, Grade 4. Residence: South Hamilton.

Education: Georgetown University; Dartmouth College; Winsor School. Professional Background: Legal recruiting; worked at large law firms in New York and Boston; worked on Capitol Hill prior to entering law school. Community and Interests: Trustee, North Shore Nursery School; Co-Chair, Friends of the Food Allergy Center, Mass. General Hospital; volunteer at local organizations; enjoying the outdoors with family; spending time on and in the water at Squam Lake, NH; reading; playing tennis.

Family: Rolf, husband; Rachel, daughter, Grade 6; Ethan, son. Residence: Rowley. Education: Assumption College. Professional Background: Commercial bank loan officer, Shawmut Bank; implemented and managed credit card program, Massachusetts Credit Union; sales of financial products, CUNA Mutual Insurance Society. Community and Interests: Parents Association volunteer, Shore Country Day School; walking on the beach with family; visiting, discovering, and exploring new places; gardening; baking and cooking (especially Italian dishes!); collecting Belleek Irish china.

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Sports in Review: 2016-17

By Nancy McNall

Fall: While success cannot always be measured

in wins and losses, Shore sports teams had a strong season on the soccer and field hockey pitch. Fall teams posted a combined win-loss record of 33-123. A talented group of dedicated players led Varsity Field Hockey to an undefeated season. Girls Varsity Soccer displayed stellar teamwork and foot skills in a season full of wins. Boys Varsity Soccer had a solid season and played one of its best games versus Pingree and, later, competed in the Eaglebrook Soccer Tournament. Boys JV Soccer finished its season with style while playing hard, passing well, and scoring often. JV Field Hockey gained valuable experience while playing a challenging schedule that included local club teams. Lastly, Cross Country consisted of a unified group of runners that raced both on campus and off.

Winter: A highlight of the winter season was the first ever Girls JV Basketball team as well as Intramural Tennis. Girls Varsity Basketball went undefeated as they were tested by several narrow margins of victory. Boys Varsity Basketball enjoyed the leadership from its ninth graders and the

all-around team play that generally defines Mr. Lund’s teams each winter. Boys JV Basketball displayed heart and hustle while improving their play immensely over the course of the season. The team earned respect and adulation from the fans with a furious comeback in their final game of the season. Squash elevated their level of play in matches versus the nationally ranked players from Meadowbrook and Fay School.

Spring: The spring season was full of highlights!

For the first time in many years, Shore teams went undefeated for the month of April. Boys Varsity Lacrosse fielded one the most talented teams in recent years. Girls’ lacrosse continues to grow, and both Girls Varsity Lacrosse and Girls JV Lacrosse enjoyed thrilling wins and a few heartbreaking losses. Though frustrated by numerous rainouts, Varsity Softball made the most of any opportunity to play and to play well. The popularity of Track continued: many records were broken and several team members competed in the State Championship Track Meet at the end of the season. Though inexperienced, Varsity Baseball was energized by the final season of Mr. Griffin’s tenure and had a season to remember!

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I N S P I R AT I O N

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I

‘Birdie’ Soars

n March 2017, in their winter musical production of Bye Bye Birdie, Upper Schoolers fluent in Snapchat, Dancing with the Stars, the Daily Show, and music downloads gave a crash course in the language of Life Magazine, American Bandstand, the Ed Sullivan Show, and vinyl records.

A nostalgic throwback to American society in the 1950s, the Tony Award-winning Birdie was inspired by the cultural phenomenon of Elvis Presley and his being drafted into the Army in 1957. The musical’s Elvis stand-in, Conrad Birdie, travels to the fictional town of Sweet Apple, Ohio, to deliver one last kiss to a young fan before departing for the military. His arrival brings romantic mayhem and family strife to the town, but all is resolved after a jealous punch is televised live on the Ed Sullivan Show. The musical was first staged in 1960 on Broadway, and became a hit film in 1963.

“This was such a fun—and funny—show!” said director and theater arts teacher Sarah Carlin. “The lighthearted storyline was a perfect fit with the group of young actors we had, really giving them a chance to shine in memorable moments. From the ear-splitting screams of Conrad’s teenage fans, to the hilarious characters of Albert’s mother and Mr. MacAfee, the audience left talking about their favorite lines and singing their favorite tunes.”

The catchy score, with lyrics by Lee Adams and music by Charles Strouse, includes numerous songs that have become standards, including “Put on a Happy Face,” “A Lot of Livin’ to Do,” and “Kids.”

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But while the songs may be familiar, the 1950sinspired choreography by Carlin and assistant director and Spanish teacher Sarah Sklarsky included dance styles that were anything but. Cast members spent weeks in afterschool and weekend rehearsals mastering the steps of the “pony,” twist, jitterbug, and more, with dance practice continuing all the way to the day of the first performance. At the same time, third grade teaching assistant Lara Lofdahl, reading specialist Rondi Kilham, and parent volunteers Karla Smith and Heather Schatz were tracking down vintage props and meticulously crafting period costumes that incorporated “poodle” skirts and other authentic details.

“This was truly a roller-coaster,” said director Carlin, “where we all boarded the cars back in December and slowly climbed a very big hill. And then, once performances began, we accelerated downhill and everything—the dances, songs, sets, and comedy—came together incredibly quickly.”

Ninth grade cast member Abi Borggaard explained, “To be honest, a week before the performance I was a little worried. We had never used most of the sets, and we were just trying on our costumes. But sure enough we pulled it together just in time for our first performance.”

Fellow ninth grader Gabe Driscoll added, “A musical like Bye Bye Birdie needs a cast that’s willing to step far outside its comfort zone and be happy about it, and this cast went far beyond what anyone could have expected when we first read the script. We managed the chaos and mayhem that inevitably accompany the

‘BI RD I E’ SOA RS

final rehearsals with laughter and left our inhibitions far behind us. I am immensely proud of the way this cast handled this show—with energy and humor and happiness.”

While Shore’s veteran ninth grade actors may have led this cast, students in sixth through eighth grades were essential in bringing Birdie to life. “This year was significant in how it brought all four Upper School grade levels together,” said Carlin, “not only to sing and dance on stage, but also to construct the sets, stage-manage the performances, run lights, and call cues in our wonderful Trustey Family Theatre.

From sixth grade to ninth, our students took on huge responsibilities and mastered difficult skills to produce something that truly delighted audiences.”

Aiding the students were a host of behind-thescenes adult mentors and helpers, who included musical director Jenn Boyum, set designer and longtime third grade teacher Sam Hamlin, lighting designer and Innovation Lab manager Cam McNall, sound engineer Emily Salfity, and set construction manager and math teacher Kent Vienot.

Yet, any of these adults will attest it was always about the kids. In the words of one audience member, “At Shore, you forget that these actors are middle school age; they are so talented and work so hard. It’s a joy to watch.” Said another, “It’s remarkable to see such complex choreography, stagecraft, comedic timing, and technical elements come off so seamlessly at this level, but somehow they pull it off year after year.”

Opposite: Claudia Pollock ’17 and Alex Oder ’18 as Rose Alvarez and Albert Peterson; this page: Gwen Schatz ’17 and Gabe Driscoll ’17 as Kim MacAfee and Hugo Peabody, Charles Hoffman ’18 as Conrad Birdie.

I N S PI RATIO N

THE HOUR OF

By Bill Fisher

Code

First graders Hadja Bah and Luca Brady worked on an iPad.

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or a whole week in December 2016, in what has become an annual event, Shore students participated in the Hour of Code, a worldwide initiative to encourage young people to explore computer coding in all its forms. According to Code.org, the nonprofit that created the Hour of Code, the vision that fuels the event is “that every student in every school should have the opportunity to learn computer science.”

Like millions of their peers in schools around the world—Code.org says more than 300 million have participated—Shore students and their teachers dedicated a full hour to learning, experimenting, and playing via the educational apps hosted at Code.org. Supported by the likes of Facebook, Google, and Microsoft, the site offers fun, engaging experiences appropriate for all ages, and everyone from the youngest PreKindergartner to the most experienced eighth or ninth grader found a tutorial that was just their speed. A visitor stopping into classrooms during the Hour of Code might have seen students and their teachers learning the basics of algorithms, sequences, loops, and

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conditionals on Box Island; building a Star Wars galaxy using JavaScript; mastering the Scratch programming language to animate their own name; or solving block-programming puzzles with Elsa and Anna in the world of Frozen.

Yet, perhaps more obvious to an observer than the coding and the games were the real-life learning journeys they seemed to spark. As it turns out, a Shore classroom full of children tackling a coding challenge looks a lot like the Shore classrooms our teachers strive to nurture every day.

At the start of the Hour of Code, students were given a few general guidelines, but were then set free to browse dozens of available tutorials and programming styles to find one that appealed. This is not unlike any other day at Shore: faculty members take pains to create opportunities for students to choose their own path, and to devise their

Third grader Philip Kim mastered a game.

TH E H OU R O F CO D E

own solution to challenges which may be academic, artistic, athletic, or social.

Having chosen their path, student coders frequently came up against obstacles almost immediately; early frustration was evident for all grade levels as young learners tried to decipher the rules of a new, code-based universe, or master the tricky controls of a programming game. Again, the resemblance to an ordinary day at Shore was evident. Teachers here are known for encouraging children to take risks in their learning and allowing them, sometimes, to be frustrated and even to fail at a given challenge. Shore’s method values failure just as much as success: it is those initial failures that build intellectual and emotional resilience, and enable students to pick themselves up with a new and improved approach to a problem.

So, faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Shore’s coders did what they had already learned to do at school: take responsibility for their own learning, and enlist their peers to collaborate on a way out. Just as in the course

Kindergartners Jack Mulrooney and Henry Sahovey put their heads together.

of an ordinary day, one of the most satisfying moments teachThe vision that fuels ers witnessed during the Hour of the event is “that Code was surely when two students huddled together over an iPad or every student in every Chromebook, both pointing at the screen and typing or mousing school should have the simultaneously, and then looked opportunity to learn to each other, their eyes wide, as they arrived at the same solution computer science.” together. This scene repeated itself over and over in every Shore classroom, as students joined forces and shared their knowledge to conquer almost any coding challenge.

For a visitor, it was just as satisfying to see teachers themselves dive into one of the tutorials and experience the same journey as their students. Many a teacher could be seen puzzling over a screenful of jumbled instructions and then, after recruiting one of their students for help, raising their arms in victory.

Just as often, teachers looked on in admiration and wonder as their students discovered a hidden way around a problem, or assembled code that did something hilariously unexpected.

For many students around the world, the moments of self-guided discovery, collaboration, and triumph sparked by the Hour of Code may well be out of the ordinary during the school day. At Shore, however, we are fortunate that nothing could seem more ordinary.

Our adventurous, student-centered culture is tailormade to inspire children and adults to creatively Fourth grade teacher Stacy Tell worked with Amalia McIntire. tackle challenges together every day.

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In Community, A Call to Action

Tenny Kagan and Mason Hamm appreciate a classmate’s poster.

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hore’s Community Code is a familiar topic of discussion and investigation from Pre-K to Grade 9; in our classrooms, hallways, Theatre, and playgrounds, the tenets of Shore’s Code—be kind, be true, be respectful, be open, be dependable, be my best—serve as the touchstone that communicates all of the school’s shared aspirations.

But in second grade, students have the opportunity to take a closer look at one of the central ideas that runs throughout the Code—the concept of community itself.

Their study of community extends from fall to winter.

“Starting from the first day of school,” says Grade 2 teacher and Lower School Math Chair Carol Porter, “we really use the idea of community as a primary tool to inspire inquiry, discovery, and emotional growth.”

A few main threads run through all the students’ explorations, explains Porter: the ways that communities are impacted by the actions of their members; the importance of effective communication in building community connections through the sharing of feelings and ideas; and the notion that our beliefs, values, and environment shape our perspective and our lives.

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“We bring these ideas to life through focused, concept-based units built around our classroom community, the Shore community, and our home community,” Porter says. “We ask questions such as, ‘How do we behave as a member of this classroom?’ ‘What are the roles of people in the Shore community?’ and ‘What kind of people are in your home community, and how do they help it to function better?’”

Those basic questions prompt numerous activities that are part of the second grade humanities curriculum. Their outcome consists not only of a wide-ranging understanding of communities, but also of a series of increasingly sophisticated, collaborative projects requiring field research, synthesis of ideas, and ultimately presentations in front of peers and parents.

“We start simply,” says Porter. “We work as a class to figure out how the Community Code plays a role in our everyday life, we pay attention to the social skills that yield a safe and effective learning environment, and finally we develop a set of classroom rules that we all agree to follow by signing a class contract.”

Soon, students are ready to step outside the class-

CA LL TO ACT I O N

room and investigate the wider Shore community. In an eye-opening, multi-day field “expedition” across the campus, students use floor plans to learn about different buildings, offices, and roles of the adults they meet. They learn about how to formulate open-ended questions, and then develop a set of interview questions for a particular Shore adult. “Finally,” says Porter, “the students pair up to conduct a formal interview with the adult—who is usually delighted to receive two inquisitive second grade visitors—and they record the exchange on their iPad to share with the class.”

Grade 2’s community study culminates with a comprehensive investigation of one member of each student’s home community. Popular choices include doctors and nurses, police officers and firefighters, entrepreneurs, librarians, and even barbers. Again, the students develop a set of written questions based on research about the role of their chosen interviewee, and meet with them in person to conduct an interview and record answers. Then, after reporting their results to the class, the students create a large-scale poster presentation that displays interview questions and answers, photos or drawings of the community member and tools of their trade, and a complete statement about the role they investigated.

“It’s actually a fairly in-depth process that allows us to work on a lot of different skills and areas of knowledge,” explains Porter. “Students learn how

“Starting from the first day of school, we really use the idea of community as a primary tool to inspire inquiry, discovery, and emotional growth.”

Carol Porter, Grade 2 teacher and Lower School Math Chair

to formulate good questions, how to record answers during a conversation, and how to conduct an informational interview on their own with an adult they may not already know very well. They begin to understand the enormous variety of contributions made to their community by individuals in many different roles.

And they then have to be able to switch gears and think about how best to present their findings to classmates and to parents, who are the audience for the final showcase of their completed posters.”

“Of course,” adds Porter, “our community unit isn’t complete until the children write thank-you notes to everyone they interviewed. Learning to say thank you is actually a very serious part of the whole process, and it’s something we know our students will continue to see emphasized throughout their Shore career and beyond.”

Porter worked on community stories with her second graders.

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A Very

Independent Study:

Digitally Mapping Middle East Conflict

By Bill Fisher

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ighth grader Sarah Kennedy explained, “I definitely want to be something like a Middle East advisor for the Department of Defense; then I could advise the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”

This came as no surprise. Kennedy’s 2016-2017 independent study project in history involved collecting data that would allow her to map the U.S. and Russian presence in the Middle East, in relation to the vast number of competing interests, insurgencies, and military operations across the region.

“I had read a lot in newspapers like the Wall Street Journal and the Boston Globe about what’s going on in the Middle East,” she said, “and I wanted to know exactly how the U.S. and Russia were relating to each other in this area of the world. We hear a lot about the U.S. waging its longest-ever war in Afghanistan, but then we also hear about Russia trying to take over the Middle East. I wanted to know how much actual bootson-the-ground truth there was to all this.”

Digging up the relevant data on a dozen Middle Eastern countries meant consulting a wide range of sources. “I started with the Encyclopaedia Britannica profile for each country. Then, to find more detailed stats about certain issues like religious conflicts, the size of the U.S. embassies and military bases, and terrorist groups, I’d go to the websites of the Department of Defense and the State Department, the CIA’s country profiles, Al-Jazeera news, the BBC—those were my go-to sources,” Kennedy explained. “Syrian refugee news agencies were also really helpful in learning about where those camps were located, because I would never have found that anywhere else.”

She admitted, “If I couldn’t find what I needed, I’d check the U.S. news agencies like CNN and Fox, but those were really my last resort, because I wanted to get closer to the source.”

Armed with a trove of the latest data on some of the gravest conflicts in the world, Kennedy then moved on to phase two of her project. “From the beginning, I had planned to turn my research into a map. Whenever I had read a news article with a map, I had found it really helped my understanding.”

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Sarah Kennedy ’18 with independent study advisor Pat Coyle

Creating a complex map of the Middle East by hand would have been far too much work for a single trimester, so Kennedy turned to Jill Codding of Shore’s Tech Team, who recommended Google’s customizable MyMaps platform. “Once I put all the data in Google’s map format,” Kennedy recounted, “I could see that the U.S. has a much larger presence in the Middle East than Russia. Just going by the number of data points I put down, representing things like U.S. airstrikes, Russian positions, and U.S. embassies, there was no question about who was the largest presence.”

Some of what Kennedy was able to visualize on her map turned out to be relevant for understanding the latest breaking news from the region, including the Trump administration’s decision to authorize U.S. airstrikes in Syria, and its proposed ban on travelers from several Middle Eastern countries. “I noticed that the banned countries, like Yemen, tend to be the most colorful on the map, meaning that they have more opposing forces operating within their borders. I had color-coded the conflicting groups in each country.”

As for Syria, Kennedy’s detailed color-coding clearly revealed the complex situation on the ground there, with Russian and U.S. airstrikes and influence contrasted against the various areas controlled by Syrian and opposition or terrorist organizations. The map also showed the astonishing spread of refugees from the Syrian conflicts into many neighboring countries.

“Even though I knew going in that my map would become dated almost immediately, I’ve still learned a lot. Though the day-to-day realities may change

IN D E P E ND EN T ST U DY

constantly, I still understand the bigger picture; the forces at work will remain basically the same,” Kennedy said.

Her advisor on the project, history teacher Pat Coyle, had high regard for Kennedy’s work. “This was truly an independent study,” he attested. “I was there mostly for moral support and bouncing ideas back and forth. But Sarah really did all the driving. She was motivated to learn and understand, and she really maintained her focus throughout the project, from doing the research to filling in the map to giving her final presentation to the Upper School.”

Now a ninth grader at Phillips Exeter Academy, Kennedy is clearly on track to earn that spot at the Defense Department. She couldn’t have chosen a more important time to be pursuing her passion for politics.

“2016 was definitely an interesting year for politics,” she said in an understatement. “I really wanted to know how the Middle East played into what was happening with the presidential campaign last year, because it certainly seems like that is the region that’s going to be the most instrumental in shaping the way that we all live in 20 years, regardless of who’s president.”

Some of what Kennedy was able to visualize on her map turned out to be relevant for understanding the latest breaking news from the region, including the Trump administration’s decision to authorize U.S. airstrikes in Syria, and its proposed ban on travelers from several Middle Eastern countries. “I noticed that the banned countries, like Yemen, tend to be the most colorful on the map, meaning that they have more opposing forces operating within their borders. I had color-coded the conflicting groups in each country.”

On Kennedy’s map, grey markers represent groups of Syrian refugees, dark green markers Russian presence or airstrikes, green markers Talibancontrolled areas, red markers ISIS-controlled areas, blue markers American presence or airstrikes; data were as of early 2017.

Shakeel Rahman Miah, the imam of the Islamic Center of Burlington, visited with Shore sixth graders in June 2017 to announce the winning designs from among the Islam-inspired decorative tiles the students had created and submitted to him as part of their interdisciplinary study of geometry, Islamic art, the Quran, and the history of the Middle East.

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TO D D GRI N N ELL ’91

Todd Grinnell ’91:

Making His Mark

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treaming entertainment company Netflix’s reboot of the family sitcom One Day at a Time stars Shore alumnus Todd Grinnell ’91 as Schneider, the owner of the building in which the show takes place. With its premiere in January 2017, the show is now in its second season.

This starring role follows appearances by Grinnell in more than 40 films and television series, including the indie hit Nesting, Hollywoodland, The Young Pope, Desperate Housewives, How I Met Your Mother, and Parks and Rec. In reviewing the first season of Netflix’s One Day at a Time, Rolling Stone called this reimagining of the TV classic—in which a newly single Latina mother raises her teen daughter and ’tween son with the “help”

of her old-school mom—”one of the best shows of the new year.” The Los Angeles Times agreed: “It preserves the domestically framed, socially engaged flavor of the original while mixing in new verve. And it has turned out very well: smart, fun, big-hearted....” The Washington Post went so far as so call the new series a “perfect revival... hope for the future of sitcoms.”

The big new twist in Netflix’s modern version is moving the focus to a Cuban family living in California. Penelope Alvarez, a former Army nurse and Afghan war vet, is the mother of two: daughter Elena and a son, Alex. The series also gains an extra generation in Penelope’s feisty mother, Lydia.

Of Grinnell’s role, Robert Lloyd of the the Los Angeles Times said, “Schneider, still called Schneider,

Grinnell with the cast of One Day at a Time

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PAST & PRESENT

Grinnell with This Bar Saves Lives co-founders Ravi Patel, Kristen Bell, and Ryan Devlin

In the past three years, the has been transformed ... to an aging company has expanded into a thourich kid (Todd Grinnell) who owns Making a name for sand Target stores and over 2,000 the building where the Alvarez Starbucks outlets in the Western family lives—a sort of playboy himself as one of U.S. As a result, it’s been able to hipster who comes into a room full Hollywood’s rising donate millions of life-saving food of Cuban Americans wearing a Che packets. With the help of Grinnell, Guevara T-shirt and says, ‘Viva young stars is just actor and co-founder Ryan Devlin, la revolution, am I right?’ But, of the start of Grinnell’s partner Ravi Patel, and This Bar course, he is only looking to belong.

Saves Lives founding partner, brand If anything, he is more of a presaccomplishments since ambassador, and actress Kristen ence than his predecessor, and he does do repairs.” completing Shore’s ninth Bell, the company’s work has been featured by the New York Times, Making a name for himself as grade program in 1991. among many other news and enterone of Hollywood’s rising young tainment outlets. stars is just the start of Grinnell’s “We started This Bar Saves accomplishments since completLives because it just made sense,” ing Shore’s ninth grade program says Grinnell. “If we could create a delicious, healthy in 1991. In 2007, Grinnell began volunteering for a snack and at the same time give a child who’s starving a nonprofit that organized life-saving medical care for life-saving packet of food, then why not?” children around the world. With the organization, he In a video message presented during Shore’s Faculty made several trips to Africa to escort sick children and Staff Recognition Night in May 2017, Grinnell back and forth to the U.S. for care. shared a memorable story about participating in the Grinnell also is a co-founder of This Bar Saves first trip former Head of School Larry Griffin led to the Lives, a California snack-bar company with a give-back Mountain School in Vershire, Vermont. He concluded, mission: for every bar sold, the company’s non-profit “That trip made an incredible mark on my life and partner makes a life-saving packet of food that goes on my education. Shore has been the foundation for to help children suffering from acute malnutrition in everything.” developing nations around the world.

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C H A R LOT T E WA RD ’ 10

Charlotte Ward ’10:

Stanford Successes with Roots at Shore

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oth a junior- and a senior-year captain of her powerful Stanford Women’s Lacrosse team, Charlotte Ward ’10 admits she earned that important role—unprecedented for a junior—despite the fact that she wasn’t even a starting player.

“I was not a star by any means,” she shared with Upper Schoolers on her visit to Shore in the fall of 2016.

She explained how a non-starting non-star was overwhelmingly nominated to be captain by her lacrosse peers: it was “because I cared about the relationships I built with people, because I knew how to advocate for myself and advocate for my teammates, and because I knew how to communicate with my coaches. It was just the way,” she said, “that I had learned to communicate with my teachers in ninth grade at Shore.”

Speaking about the interview process she went through with coaches before officially being named captain, she continued, “It feels a little like you’re on trial. You sit in front of four coaches, and they ask questions for more than an hour. You submit letters of recommendation and your résumé. And I truly feel I made it through that experience because of the foundations I received at Shore. After all, what did I have to do during the interview? Talk, advocate for yourself, reflect on your experiences, rely on the relationships you’ve built—all things I knew the power of the moment I stepped foot on campus at Stanford, because of what I learned at Shore.”

That theme echoed throughout Ward’s talk with Upper Schoolers. Through her high school career at St. Paul’s, where she entered as a sophomore, and now during her college years at Stanford as a respected athlete and a political science major, she’s relied on essential skills and values instilled here at Shore—especially in the ninth grade—by teachers with whom, she said, she still has the strongest of relationships.

Building those connections with faculty was one of the most valuable aspects of her ninth grade experience, said Ward. One of her ninth grade mentors, Tung Trinh, a past Shore history teacher and now Head of Middle School at Garrison Forest School outside of Baltimore, played an especially important role. “When

Ward with Director of Admissions and Enrollment Management Daphne Faldi

you get accepted to Stanford,” she recounted, “they give you the opportunity to send a certificate of appreciation to one of your teachers, and I sent mine to Mr. Trinh. From there on we’ve really had a great relationship. When my Stanford lacrosse team went and played Johns Hopkins last year, Mr. Trinh actually came to my game.”

For Ward, the connections back to Shore extend to her ninth grade classmates, as well. “In the ninth grade, you really get to know the people you’re in classes with. You build relationships with them in ways that you wouldn’t necessarily have the opportunity to do at a bigger school. I’m still very close with many of the ninth graders who were my classmates. Just recently we were all chatting in a little Facebook message thread, and it’s been great to stay together that way, and remain connected to our roots. Because Shore is really where we all started. And though we’ve all gone off to do pretty interesting, different, exciting, and accomplished things, we still come back to each other.”

Exciting and accomplished, indeed. When Ward wasn’t on the lacrosse turf or pursuing her studies, she was a leader on campus for the One Love Foundation,

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a group she reached out to personally to help build the organization at Stanford. The nonprofit is named after Yeardley Love, a University of Virginia student and lacrosse star who in 2010 was beaten to death by her ex-boyfriend in her off-campus apartment. The news served as a wakeup call for many about the horrors of relationship abuse and violence. Today, the Foundation is dedicated to educating students and athletes about the signs of relationship violence and how to combat it.

Love had been a lacrosse idol of Ward, who was in eighth grade at the time, so when she reached Stanford, she took the lead in bringing the One Love Foundation’s message to the West Coast. “I knew what I was passionate about, and I knew I wanted to give back in a way that mattered to me,” she said. As a result of her efforts in conjunction with those of other student athletes, Stanford lacrosse played rivals from the University of California, Berkeley, at Stanford last spring in a benefit for the One Love Foundation.

“Giving back to the community was an important pillar at Shore,” Ward told Upper Schoolers. “It’s what we do. And that’s why I got involved with One Love.

There’s been so much talk about sexual assault on campuses, which is really necessary, but I wanted to help create awareness around the idea of relationship violence. I think a lot of people don’t understand that this doesn’t just happen between strangers, it doesn’t just happen at frat parties where people don’t know

each other. This is something where you can be in love with someone, but One Love is trying to teach you that where there’s abuse, that’s not love.”

In addition to helping stage the benefit lacrosse game, Ward and some of her fellow athletes also appeared in a video released by Stanford Athletics to spread the word about One Love and relationship violence.

Again, Ward traces her involvement with the Foundation back to her middle school and ninth grade years. “Shore taught me about the importance of giving back, and of having the confidence to rely on yourself and to think about what matters to you—what your values are—and to put that into action.”

Not that everything has come without struggle for this standout athlete, scholar, and activist. “I’ve had my share of troubles and challenges, at both St. Paul’s and Stanford,” Ward told the audience of sixth through ninth graders. “Things may not have always gone my way, in terms of my playing time on the field or the stats you see on the lacrosse website. But I truly do feel like Shore taught me how to stand up for myself, how to articulate my feelings, how to have confidence, and to say what I wanted to say. And these things were all solidified in ninth grade, where I got to figure out who I am and what I value. That’s such a special year, when you have the support of the entire Shore community behind you, and you can really spread your wings.”

“Talk, advocate for yourself, reflect on your experiences, rely on the relationships you’ve built—all things I knew the power of the moment I stepped foot on campus at Stanford, because of what I learned at Shore.”

Charlotte Ward ’10

Ward spoke in the Trustey Family Theatre.

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CLASS NOTES

Brooke Cook ’64 retired from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency after more than 30 years of service. She is currently studying Italian language and culture, and she celebrated the marriage of her son, Ransom, in August 2016.

Ingrid Thoft ’86, an award-winning author of private-eye novels, returned to campus in October 2016 to discuss with Upper School students her life after Shore, her writing process, and the release of her latest book in the popular Fina Ludlow series, Duplicity.

Learn what’s happening with your classmates and other Shore friends by browsing the Class Notes published below. Please also take a moment to share the latest events and achievements in your life. You may submit your own class notes by sending an e-mail to alumni@shoreschool.org, or by calling the Advancement Office at (978) 402-3818. We look forward to hearing from you!

Nick Shields ’88, co-founder of SpikedSeltzer, was featured in the Boston Globe in February 2017 after Anheuser-Busch acquired the company.

SpikedSeltzer was founded in 2013 in a Westport, CT, garage and currently offers four flavors in cans and bottles in 14 states.

Alexandra Cann Ballard ’89 recently published her debut novel, What I Lost.

She has worked as a magazine editor, middle school English teacher, freelance writer, and cake maker. She holds master’s degrees from both Columbia

(journalism) and Fordham (education), and spent ten years in the classroom, beginning in the Bronx and ending up in Berkeley, California, with her husband and two daughters.

Rob Blood ’90 was featured in the Boston Globe’s Travel section in January 2017. The founder and chief executive officer of Lark Hotels, which operates 18 boutique hotels in Massachusetts and California, he discussed the opening of Lark Hotels’ second Salem, MA, hotel, the Hotel Salem.

Members of the Class of 1977 gathered together in Wenham, MA, at the home of Emily Brown ’81 and Stu Thorne ’77 for a 40th reunion celebration on June 22, 2017.

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Michael Corkery ’90 is a reporter at The New York Times who writes about finance and its impact on consumers, businesses, and the environment. He was part of a team of reporters that revealed how big banks and corporations have forced Americans to give up their day in court and instead submit their disputes to private arbitration.

He has a history degree from Brown University and now lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two children.

Barbara Wilcox DiLorenzo ’90, an author and illustrator, recently published a new book titled Renato and the Lion. The book is a touching, magical story of a boy in a war-torn country and the stone lion that rescues him. An award-winning watercolor painter, Barbara now lives in New Jersey and teaches at the Arts Council of Princeton.

Todd Grinnell ’91 stars in the Netflix ‘One Day at a Time’ reboot, which was recently renewed for a second season.

This starring role follows appearances

by Grinnell in more than 40 films and television series, including the indie

On May 25, 2017, alumni, Grade 9 students, faculty, staff, family, and friends took Mr. Griffin to Fenway Park for a rainy but fun Shore get-together as the Red Sox defeated the Texas Rangers 6-2. Our baseball-loving former Head of School took the field to be honored at home plate before the start of the game, and received a special shoutout on the Jumbotron in the fifth inning.

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hit Nesting, Hollywoodland, The Young Pope, Desperate Housewives, How I Met Your Mother, and Parks and Rec. Grinnell is also the co-founder of This Bar Saves Lives, a snack company that sends life-saving food packets to children suffering from acute malnutrition around the world.

Mary Felton Norman ’94 was married in October 2016 in Jackson, NH. More than 20 Shore alumni were in attendance.

Abigail Cohen ’98 lives in Boston’s South End and is the Assistant Dean for Accessibility and Assistive Technology at Wheaton College in Norton, MA. She previously worked as a school psychologist.

Dennis Corkery ’00 lives in Washington, D.C., and serves as a Senior Staff Attorney at the nonprofit Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs. In his role, Dennis litigates civil rights cases pro bono in the areas of employment discrimination, wage theft, and police misconduct, among others.

Caroline Guenther ’03 was named to the 2017 Forbes 30 Under 30: Manufacturing & Industry list. She serves as an Integrated Business Planning Manager for Cisco Systems, managing Cisco product families that amount to a total of about $2 billion in value. She has also worked to improve forecast accuracy, which has enabled the company to save millions in supply chain costs.

Alex Curatolo ’05 lives in Washington, D.C., and works for a small economic consulting firm that specializes in transfer pricing.

Mimi Neal ’05 graduated from Tabor Academy and Bates College and currently serves as the Internship Program Manager for Fidelity Investments. The program encompasses leadership training, networking, financial literacy, and career development for more than 1,000 interns across the country. She lives in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of Boston and is engaged to be married at the Kittansett Club in Marion, MA, in August 2017.

C LASS N OT ES

On November 22, 2016, more than 60 young alumni and Grade 9 students gathered together at Shore to reconnect with classmates and faculty members.

Samantha Stokes ’05 married former faculty member Tim McAuliffe on October 9, 2016, at the Smith Barn in Peabody, MA. Anna Falzone ’08 and Porter Grieve ’08, founders of popular lifestyle blog and Instagram account @recesscity, embarked on a journey around the world to pursue full-time travel blogging. The couple, who recently married, plan to take their Boston-based social media presence around the globe as they work with ethical brands and hotels whose mission and aesthetic they believe in.

Rosie Putnam ’08 lives in Boston and works at Cambridge Associates, an investment consulting firm, focusing her work on portfolio management for endowments and foundations.

Alex Yen ’08 lives in Cambridge, MA, and is the Customer Events & Experience Coordinator at HubSpot, a marketing software company.

Jake Stokes ’09 is a first-year student at the University of California, Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.

Jake graduated from Saint Anselm

College in May 2016, where he studied biochemistry and was named to the Dean’s List and Northeast-10 Conference Honor Roll in all eight of his semesters.

Charlotte Ward ’10, a 2017 graduate of Stanford University, returned to campus in December 2016 to speak with Upper School students about attending Shore’s ninth grade, captaining Stanford’s Women’s Lacrosse team, volunteering for the One Love Foundation, and more.

Kimberly Dawes ’12, put together her own fundraising site as a sophomore at Villanova University to help orphan children in Cameroon. Kim partnered with CameroonONE, a non-profit devoted to providing a new life to orphans in Cameroon through foster care.

Oliver Zmetrovich ’15, as a senior at St. John’s Prep, placed first in the Division 1 state championship in the 100 butterfly, and placed second overall in the 100 backstroke, 200 medley relay, and the 400 freestyle relay teams. Oliver was named Catholic Conference All-Star and

MVP of the conference championship at Holy Cross. Oliver is a member of the National Honor Society and the National Latin Honor Society.

Margaret McFadden ’16 performed as Katherine Grainger in the Wheelock Family Theatre production of Billy Elliot in February 2017. A graduate of Manchester Essex Regional High School, Margaret has also been seen on the Wheelock stage in her role as the Turtle and Lady Bird in A Year with Frog and Toad, and as Mohawk Girl in the regional premier of Akeelah and the Bee. Jenny Minney ’16, a senior at Pingree School, received the Best of School Division’s third place prize in Montserrat College of Art’s 6th District competition for her piece, “Self-Portrait in Thread.”

Caroline Pratt ’16 served as a top swimmer for Pingree School last season, breaking school records in both the 100 fly and 100 breaststroke at the New England Prep School Athletic Conference Championship. Pratt was also a member of the 200 medley relay that finished fifth at the NEPSAC championships.

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In Memoriam Ruth Storey Stuart Felton ’43, P ’63 ’66 ’69, GP ’96 ’02

R

uth Storey Stuart Felton died on June 4, 2016. She was a graduate of Shore Country Day School and St. Timothy’s School in Maryland, Radcliffe College, and Northeastern University. As a former teacher and tutor, she valued education, calling it “one of the most important things” in life. Mrs. Felton was a tireless supporter of numerous organizations, including Shore, Dexter School, Brooks School, Groton School, Northeastern University, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Winsor School, and St. Timothy’s School. Mrs. Felton was a past president of the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America, and a member of the Chilton Club, Vincent Club, Junior League of Boston, Myopia Hunt Club, and Singing Beach Club. She was a former Senior Warden at St. John’s Episcopal Church and in the summer attended Emmanuel Church in Manchester-by-the-Sea. In addition to her brother, she is survived by her four children, Ruth S. (James) Ritchie, Elizabeth S. (Samuel) Hallowell, Claire S. (Neil) Roth, and Harborne W. (Cathy) Stuart, Jr.; three stepchildren, C. Conway (Sallie) Felton III, Alexander A. (Cathy) Felton and Mary C. (William) Loring; and ten grandchildren, nine step-grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.

Amy Foster P ’22 ’24 ’28

A

my DiAdamo Foster, beloved wife of Franklin H. Foster, mother of Henry, Samuel, and

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Jack, and daughter of Carmine and Barbara (Beecher) DiAdamo, died September 14, 2016. A longtime resident of South Hamilton, she was a member of the Board of Trustees at Shore Country Day School. Amy was a legendary competitor who excelled at everything, especially sports. While at Pike School, she received the Sally Bullard Award and the Girl’s Athletic Award and Headmaster’s Prize. At Middlesex School, Amy won 12 varsity letters and was elected captain in soccer, basketball, and lacrosse. She was named All-League and First Team AISGA in 1991 and 1992, and All-American in 1991, 1992, and 1993. She was also awarded the Boston Globe All-Scholastic Award that year as the best NESPAC female lacrosse player. She still holds the record for most points scored in a season and is a member of the Middlesex

Hall of Fame. Amy continued her career at Middlebury College in Vermont, where she is also a member of the school’s Hall of Fame. Amy played four years of varsity soccer, but left her greatest mark in lacrosse. Nominated the 1997 NCAA Woman of the Year, she still owns the record for more goals, assists, and points than any other player in the history of women’s lacrosse at Middlebury. With all her accomplishments, Amy’s greatest triumph and love was her family. In addition to her parents, she is survived by her husband and three sons; two brothers, William DiAdamo and his wife, Heather, of North Andover, and Robert DiAdamo and his wife, Lisa, of Brookline; six nieces and nephews; and her parents-in-law Herb and Christina Foster of Bedford, New York, and brother-in-law Charles Foster and his wife Megan.

Appleton King, Former Faculty

A

ppleton “Terry” King passed away August 25, 2016. Terry graduated from Harvard College and became a 1st Lieutenant in the Marine Corps. A beloved coach and teacher at Shore Country Day School and Pingree School, Terry touched the lives of many students and athletes with his passion, energy, humor, and his motto: “No one should sit on the bench.”

Throughout his life, no matter where he lived, his love of tennis inspired him to organize tournaments and encourage participation in the sport he adored. His favorite place on Earth was Squam Lake.

In addition to his wife Nancy, and their two dogs, he is survived by his children, Lisa King, Appleton

IIN NM MEM EMO ORI RIAAM M

King, Lily King, Peter Ward, Lisa Ward, Preston Ward, Jamie Ward, and their spouses; and nine grandchildren.

Robert Spingler P ’87, GP ’21

R

obert A. Spingler, DMD, passed away January 8, 2017. The husband of Stacey Somers Spingler, he was a former member of the Board of Trustees at Shore Country Day School, and served on the Board of the Hamilton Foundation, the Board of Directors of the Eastern Dentists Insurance Company, and as the Assistant Secretary of the Massachusetts Dental Society.

He was a graduate of Fairleigh Dickinson University, receiving both his Bachelors of Science and Doctor of Medicine in Dentistry.

He opened his private practice in South Hamilton over 30 years ago and remained an active member of the Hamilton community. He was a loyal and devoted husband, father, grandfather, and friend. He leaves his son, Derek Spingler ’87 and daughter-in-law, Molly Kenny; granddaughter, Philipa-Shea Tory Spingler; and stepdaughters, Cameron and Caroline Scott. He is also survived by his siblings, Donald Spingler of NC; Wendy Hawryluk of NJ; John Spingler of NJ; and Janet Ganley of MA. He was predeceased by his wife Eileen Shea Spingler and his brother, Rick Spingler.

Isabel Barton Young ’78, P ’11 ’13

I

sabel (Izzy) Barton Young, beloved wife of David M. Young, died unexpectedly on April 20, 2017. She was the daughter of Randolph ’48 and Maud (Palmer) Barton ’49. Izzy graduated from Shore Country Day School, Pingree School (Class of 1981), and the

University of Virginia, where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in environmental science in 1985.

Throughout her life, Izzy courageously dealt with epilepsy and other health challenges. She always found a way to persevere and do the things that she loved to do, without drawing attention to the hardship she endured. Izzy was a supporter and member of the Clay Dreaming Pottery Studio, where she loved immersing herself in clay.

She embraced life to the fullest and brought joy to those around her through her sense of humor and her vibrant smile. In addition to her husband, with whom she shared 28 years of marriage, and her parents, she is survived by her children, Adrienne Young and Jarrod Young, both of Manchester-by-the-Sea; two brothers, Robert Barton and his wife, Leslie, of Newburyport, and William Barton and his wife, Anne, of Hamilton; and a niece and three nephews.

Alumni Minot Frye ’71 Dina Kauders Leonard ’53 Thomas Navarra ’16 Whitney Kemble Robbins ’53

Parents of Alumni Stanley Jacobs P ’05 ’08 Helen Spaulding P ’65 ’66 ’67 ’71

Grandparents of Alumni Ayres D’Souza GP ’18 ’20 Elda Harlow GP ’16 ’18 Mayo Johnson P ’81, GP ’15 Johanna Kagan GP ’14 ’17 ’20 ’22 ’24 Jack Meaney GP ’19 ’21 Donald Schimmel GP ’17 ’19 Philip Wilson GP ’15 ’17 ’20

Anita Barbato This spring a memorial plaque honoring Anita Barbato was installed in the Lower School octagon where students and faculty may see it and reflect on the life of service and dedication this extraordinary teacher, leader, and friend gave to Shore students, families, and colleagues. Anita held strong to her faith in the goodness of people; her gift was helping others discover the goodness in themselves.

Her grace left a lasting legacy for all.

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Save the Date Join the Shore community in 2017-2018 for these beloved traditions, service opportunities, and memorable special occasions.

Meet Head of School Clair Ward at starred events.

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September 28

Back-to-School Night H

October 14

Harvest Festival H

October 27–28

Rummage Sale

October 31

Halloween Parade

November 8

Middle School Admissions Open House H

November 21

Young Alumni Gathering H

November 22

Grandfriends Visiting Day & Thanksgiving Assembly H

December 14

Holiday Concert

January 21

All Grades Admissions Open House H

January 27–28

Shore Family Ski Weekend

February 9

Acapalooza

March 1–3

Upper School Winter Musical

April 6

Math + Families = Fun!

April 21

United in Service

April 27

Lower School World Music Concert & Art Show

May 3

Faculty & Staff Appreciation Night H

May 17

Upper School Spring Concert & Art Show

June 13

81st Closing Exercises

SHORE BU LLET IN FA LL 2017

Harvest Festival October 14, 2017 2–4 p.m. on Campus All Shore families are invited to join in free family fun and welcome our new Head of School, Clair Ward.

Your generosity makes the BIG… and small moments possible at Shore each year.

The Shore Fund supports every dimension of the Shore experience. It ensures that our students learn from exceptional faculty, take part in integrated, hands-on learning, and participate in such Shore activities as our robust athletics and arts programming and signature class trips to Hosmer Point, Yarmouth, and Squam Lake.

For more information contact the Advancement Office or visit www.shoreschool.org/givenow.

www.shoreschool.org/givenow Jody Johnson P ’19 ’21 Director of Advancement jjohnson@shoreschool.org (978) 402-3816

Brooke Booth P ’24 ’26 Director of Annual Giving bbooth@shoreschool.org (978) 402-3818

Anne Pfaff Advancement Services and Event Coordinator apfaff@shoreschool.org

Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 110 Beverly, MA

SHORE

545 Cabot Street Beverly, Massachusetts 01915 Forwarding Service Requested Forwarding Service Requested

If this publication is addressed to If this publication is addressed to someone who no someone who no longer mainlonger maintains a permanent address at your home, tains a permanent address at your contact Annie Pfaff in the Advancement Office at home, contact Brooke Booth in the apfaff@shoreschool.org. This will enable us to keep Advancement Office at bbooth@ our database current and ensure that all alumni shoreschool.org. This will enable us receive the Bulletin. Thank you! to keep our database current and ensure that all alumni receive the Bulletin. Thank you!